As concerns mount about looming heating and electricity shortages in Kyrgyzstan this winter, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have pledged to help Bishkek avert a crisis. Fears about shortages stem from extremely low water levels in the Toktogul reservoir, a major source of hydropower in Central Asia, as well as for water used by downstream states for irrigation during the summer. Top-level government officials from all three states signed an agreement in late November in Almaty, under which Kyrgyzstan agreed to minimize…