Before people start frothing at mouths without reading first 4 lines of the article:
* Moldova’s contract with Gazprom expired at end of September
* Gazprom extended it for October
* Moldova owes Gazprom $709 mln for previous supplies
* Moldova asked Gazprom to cut price -sources
The pro EU government is trying to generate an unnecesary stand-off to use as an auspices to run to the EU for some aid money. It’s all political really. It’s more convenient to point to Russia and say “see, it’s because of them that we have no gas”. Gas supplies to Moldova have not been a problem for decades and we provide a subsidised rate for them. All the new government needs to do is sign the contract at the already subsidised rates, pay the previous quarter fees and not politicise an important energy source for the economy and it’s inhabitants.
I’m curious: does this affect Transnistria? If I had to guess what the arrangement is, I’d guess that Transnistria contracts with Gazprom separately from the rest of Moldova and won’t be affected. Am I wrong?
EDIT: [Apparently Russia sells to Transnistria and Transnistria resells to the rest of Moldova](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/10/22/moldova-declares-state-of-emergency-over-gas-crisis). My guess is this is how Russia indirectly funds Transnistria’s separatism, and Chișinău is trying to cut off that cashflow in order to give themselves a better negotiating position with Transnistria for talks to end the separatist standoff.
This is unfortunately a conflict that will have to be brought to a head, because Moldova wants EU membership but that will be impossible as long as part of it is under Russian control. So SOME kind of negotiation has to happen, because the current stand-off is untenable.
5 comments
Before people start frothing at mouths without reading first 4 lines of the article:
* Moldova’s contract with Gazprom expired at end of September
* Gazprom extended it for October
* Moldova owes Gazprom $709 mln for previous supplies
* Moldova asked Gazprom to cut price -sources
The pro EU government is trying to generate an unnecesary stand-off to use as an auspices to run to the EU for some aid money. It’s all political really. It’s more convenient to point to Russia and say “see, it’s because of them that we have no gas”. Gas supplies to Moldova have not been a problem for decades and we provide a subsidised rate for them. All the new government needs to do is sign the contract at the already subsidised rates, pay the previous quarter fees and not politicise an important energy source for the economy and it’s inhabitants.
I’m curious: does this affect Transnistria? If I had to guess what the arrangement is, I’d guess that Transnistria contracts with Gazprom separately from the rest of Moldova and won’t be affected. Am I wrong?
EDIT: [Apparently Russia sells to Transnistria and Transnistria resells to the rest of Moldova](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/10/22/moldova-declares-state-of-emergency-over-gas-crisis). My guess is this is how Russia indirectly funds Transnistria’s separatism, and Chișinău is trying to cut off that cashflow in order to give themselves a better negotiating position with Transnistria for talks to end the separatist standoff.
This is unfortunately a conflict that will have to be brought to a head, because Moldova wants EU membership but that will be impossible as long as part of it is under Russian control. So SOME kind of negotiation has to happen, because the current stand-off is untenable.
Incompetent authorities.
Increased price ?