Transnistria secures Russian loan for gas payments, turns down Ukrainian aid
Transnistria's leader, Vadim Krasnoselsky, has announced that the unrecognized state has obtained a loan from Moscow to pay for gas imports from Europe.
This decision comes as Tiraspol declines aid from Ukraine. According to Krasnoselsky, Russia will provide a loan to "Tiraspoltransgaz," enabling the entity to settle bills for the incoming "blue fuel" from Europe.
Krasnoselsky emphasized that these are "funds to be repaid—it's not free, as some like to speculate". He added that the region could start receiving gas by the end of the week under a favorable scenario.
Previously, NewsMaker reported that Moldova's Prime Minister Dorin Recean offered a loan of 3 million cubic meters of gas to Tiraspol to maintain system pressure. The European Commission was ready to foot the bill for this gas via a grant package.
On Monday, January 27th, the European Union proposed an emergency aid package worth 30 million euros to Moldova to address an energy crisis purportedly triggered by Russia. As the European Commission noted, this package was meant to finance "the acquisition and transport of natural gas to the Transnistrian region to help restore power and heating supplies".
Transnistria has opted out of assistance from Ukraine. Vadim Krasnoselsky rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's offer to send coal and specialists to restart a power plant that previously operated on Russian gas. Krasnoselsky stated that two anthracite coal generators at the station require a costly conversion—over 50 million euros—to use "coal gas" from Ukraine, a process that could take more than a year. "This answers all questions," he said.