Sandu: Russia may use gas to prevent Moldova from joining the EU
Moldovan President Maia Sandu said that there is no connection between gaining access to Russian gas and her country’s desire to enter the mechanism (EU). She admitted that Russia could use the topic of gas to hinder Moldova’s European integration.
Ms. Sandu commented on yesterday’s statement by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who accused Moldova of “extorting” gas. The President of the country did not agree with him, saying that she did not see any connection between gas supplies and plans to obtain the status of a candidate country for joining the EU.
“These are separate things. We pay for gas consumption, we pay a lot … Moldova is an independent, sovereign country, it is the right choice for how long they should be EU members, ”said Maia Sandu in an interview with the TV channel TV8 (translated by RIA Novosti).
She did not rule out that the Russian government could exert negative pressure on Moldova. “The Russian Federation can use gas or other tools, such as electricity – we are even more dependent there, because we have the theoretical possibility of buying gas from other sources, using these tools against us,” Sandu said.
Moldova has not paid the debt for Russian gas in the amount of $709 million, but supplies are still ongoing. In April, Maia Sandu said that the country cannot prefer gas from the Russian Federation because of the possibility of an alternative. Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Statistics of Moldova Andrey Spinu is revising the terms of the contract with Gazprom in May. Sergei Lavrov argues that the West is “clearly trying to make a second Ukraine” out of Moldova.
Read about the reaction of the Russian Federation to the possible expansion of the EU in the material “Kommersant” “Russia has switched to counter-entry.”
More news in Telegram channel “Kommersant”.