Russian Embassy Blamed Moldova, Ukraine and the Collective West for the Situation in Transnistria

The Russian Embassy to the Republic of Moldova issued a statement “regarding the situation in Transnistria”. The diplomatic mission said that “conscious ignoring of numerous problems in relations with Gazprom the Chisinau authorities” is the main reason for the crisis situation in the Transnistrian region, omniapres.md reported. The embassy also accuses Kyiv of contributing to the problems on the left bank of the Dniester by repeating Gazprom’s versions. “Through the repeated and explicit refusal of the Ukrainian side to extend the natural gas transit agreements, Gazprom was deprived of the technical and legal possibility to supply gas for transit to the territory of Ukraine, including to Transnistria, starting from 1 January 2025. Thus, Kyiv cynically stopped the transit of Russian gas during the winter period in order to condemn the population of Transnistria to suffering, leaving hundreds of thousands of citizens without heat and hot water. The feigned willingness of local officials to offer some ‘help’ to the region looks like hypocrisy,” the statement said. The Russian diplomatic mission also accused pro-government media in Chisinau and Kyiv of trying to “cynically shift responsibility for the energy crisis” to Moscow. “False and manipulative allegations about ‘Moscow’s rejection of Tiraspol’ are surfaced. Propaganda attacks are aimed at undermining the confidence of Transnistrians in Russia. Moreover, some ‘hotheads’, with the tacit approval of Moldovan officials, propose to solve the Transnistrian issue by force. We have repeatedly warned that such actions will not go unanswered,” the Russians threatened. The embassy also states that the situation on the left bank of the Dniester was artificially created by the collective West and Ukraine. “Let there be no doubt in anyone’s mind: the protection of Russian citizens and compatriots is an absolute priority of our foreign policy,” the statement added. We would like to point out that the Moldovan authorities have repeatedly said that Gazprom makes the continuation of gas supplies via the alternative route conditional on the payment of a debt of 709m dollars. Chisinau does not recognize this debt. As for the situation in Transnistria, the authorities in Chisinau offered Tiraspol assistance in buying gas on the gas exchange. The region’s leadership refused this offer.