Ashkabat (Turkmenistan) (PTI): Energy-hungry India expects substantial growth in ties with the hydrocarbon-rich central Asian countries of Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan in future, Vice-President Hamid Ansari said here on Friday.

Ansari arrived in this Turkmenistan capital city today to a warm welcome on the first leg of his two-nation tour. He will proceed to neighbouring Kazakhstan on April 6.

Expressing India's desire to deepen and broaden cooperation with the two countries, Ansari said India is a major market for energy just like China, US and the EU.

Speaking to reporters accompanying him, he said India, which is not self-sufficient in energy, will import hydrocarbons from "every source".

"We should be in a position to take advantage of the evolving situation," he said.

In reply to a question on central Asia, Ansari said the energy-rich region is witnessing a race between several countries including Russia, US and China for gaining control of these resources.

In reply to another query, Ansari, on is first foreign visit since taking over as Vice President in August last year, emphasised that energy cooperation will prominently figure in talks he will have with the leaders of the two countries.

However, he steered clear of a question on the exact status of the proposed Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline, saying technical discussions are "going on".

"Fifteen years back, our ties with the ASEAN and Gulf region were a fraction of what it is today," he recalled.

"Of course, we should not think of yesterday or today. We should think of tomorrow and the day after tomorrow," the 74-year-old Ansari said.