BELGRADE, December 15. /TASS/. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic hopes that his country would soon agree on additional purchases of Russian gas at a reduced price, the president told an open session of the Serbian government.

"We have serious gas supply problems. We have the price of $270, as was promised by [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin, in accordance with the volume we used in in the past year," he said. "Now that we need additional 6 billion cubic meters of gas per day, we can only buy it at a commodity exchange, at the highest price possible, which is a disaster for us. Good thing is that our financial situation is good. I believe that after a meeting with Putin and talks with [Gazprom chief] Alexei Miller, the Russians will meet us halfway, and the issue of gas will be solved," he said during the session, aired by the national television on Tuesday.

Srbijagas chief Dusan Bajatovic said he planned to sign an agreement with Russia on Monday.

Miller and Vucic has a video call on December 7 to discuss issues of gas supplies. It was noted that in January-November 2021 Gazprom’s gas supplies to Serbia were up by 57% on the entire 2020.

According to the results of the negotiations between Vladimir Putin and Aleksandar Vucic on November 25 in Sochi, the sides reached an agreement that Russia would keep the gas price at $270 per 1,000 cubic meters for the next six winter months. Then, Belgrade will receive favorable conditions from Moscow under a long-term contract.

Gazprom has been supplying gas to Serbia along a new route since January 1, 2021. Gas is pumped from Russia via the sea-bottom Turk Stream pipeline and further on across Turkey and Bulgaria.