CHISINAU, August 15. / TASS /. Moldovan President Igor Dodon said he wants to discuss new conditions for gas supplies with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the near future.

"In late August or early September, a meeting is scheduled with Russian President Vladimir Putin," Dodon told Moldova 1 TV channel, adding that he would like to "discuss everything, including matters pertaining to gas supplies."

The Moldovan president said earlier in an interview with TASS that he was concerned about the possible termination or reduction of Russian gas transit via Ukraine. According to him, it would negatively affect Moldova’s revenue from transit services and could also reduce or even end Russian gas supplies to the country. Dodon pointed out that the Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline, designed as an alternative route for transporting gas from Romania and sponsored by the EU, had not been completed yet. At the same time, it was unclear where gas for reverse supplies will come from, Dodon added.

Moldova purchases gas from Russia's Gazprom in accordance with a contract that was signed in 2008 and has been extended every year since then. The contract links gas prices for Moldova to the global market price. During his visit to Moscow in February 2019, Dodon asked Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller to give Moldova a 25% gas discount. Following a meeting with Miller on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), the Moldovan leader announced that an agreement had been reached to launch negotiations on new gas supply conditions and gas transit for the period starting from January 1, 2020. Last year, Gazprom supplied 2.9 bln cubic meters of gas to Moldova, which is 8.4% more compared to 2017.