Moldovan separatists reject help with energy supplies

A dispute over gas supplies between the Moldovan government and the separatist region of Transnistria is creating political tensions. The region has been left without gas supplies after the transit agreement through Ukraine was not renewed, but the separatist government is unwilling to accept supplies from the European market.

Transnistria has been facing an energy crisis since the New Year, after Ukraine kept its promise and halted the transit of Russian gas to Europe through its territory when a key agreement with Moscow expired.

Vadim Krasnoselsky, president of the Russian-backed separatist enclave on Moldova’s eastern flank, said in a message on Telegram on Friday that “1,500 multi-storey apartment buildings have no gas for heating and hot water. Nearly 72,000 private households have no gas. One hundred and fifty gas boiler houses have been shut down.” CNN reported.

We don’t want help

Politico also reports that, according to leaked correspondence, the pro-Kremlin leadership of the unrecognised state, based in the city of Tiraspol, rejected Moldovan offers of gas supplies from the European market and turned down offers of humanitarian aid as well.

“Fortunately, our region is rich in wood. There are still reserves. I urge residents of rural areas who have working stoves to find wood and burn it wherever possible,” he added.

Authorities in the Moldovan separatist region of Transnistria should stop obstructing offers of alternative energy supplies, the European Commission said amid rising political tensions following Russia’s decision to cut off natural gas supplies.

“We understand that the Moldovan government has already offered Transnistria energy and humanitarian assistance, which has not yet been accepted. We call on Tiraspol to work with Chișinău to address the situation in the interests of the local population,” said Anitta Hipper, the European Commission’s foreign affairs spokesperson.

Transnistria has remained de facto autonomous since the war between the breakaway region and Moldova following the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1990s, and is home to more than a thousand Russian soldiers.

Will Moscow resolve the situation?

The Moldovan government says Moscow has refused to export natural gas to Transnistria via available alternative routes through Moldova, as part of an effort to stoke tensions ahead of critical parliamentary elections later this year.

Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean says the crisis could ultimately bring an end to Transnistria’s self-proclaimed independence.

“Our goal is to reintegrate the country. And that should start with Russia having to withdraw its troops so that we can govern it properly. We are here to offer a peaceful resolution to this conflict,” Recean said.

Anatoliy Dirun, an assistant professor at the Tiraspol School of Political Studies, said the authorities in Transnistria were almost certainly playing for time and hoping Moscow would find a solution.

“I think it could happen in a week, perhaps two, and in this way the authorities would rather wait a few weeks for Russia to step in and resolve the issue,” Dirun said.

Anna-Kaisa Itkonen, the EU’s spokesperson for energy and housing, said Brussels had set up a working group with Moldova and was monitoring the “very serious situation” in the region.

“We continue to exchange views regularly with the Moldovan authorities to mitigate any potential consequences of the end of Russian gas supplies to the country,” Itkonen added.