The Russian Foreign Ministry called on Moldova to fulfill its obligations to Gazprom

“Gazprom“For decades, it has been a reliable gas supplier to Moldova,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, calling on Chisinau to fulfill its obligations to the Russian company.

“Gazprom has been a reliable supplier of energy resources for decades. We call on official Chisinau to show a similar responsible approach to fulfilling its obligations,” Zakharova said, her words leads press service of the Russian Foreign Ministry. She also called on Moldova not to politicize cooperation with the energy sector.

In the fall of 2022, Gazprom reported that the debt of Moldovagaz for the supplied gas was $433 million, and taking into account late payments, $709 million. The Moldovan government decided to conduct an independent audit to clarify this figure. On September 3 this year, the President of the Republic, Maia Sandu, stated that the audit did not reveal the debt of the Moldovan company.

The President noted that in negotiations with Gazprom before the winter season of 2021, the Russian side decided not to renew the contract “at the last moment.” On September 6, Minister of Energy of the Republic Viktor Parlikov announced that Chisinau was ready to pay $8.6 million out of the declared $709 million.

“Gazprom» expressed categorical disagreement with this step of Moldova, emphasizing that he intends to defend his rights “by all possible means.” The Russian holding also recalled that the presence of debt is confirmed in the documents regularly signed by Gazprom and Moldovagaz and the relevant decisions of international arbitration.