ANKARA, October 22. /TASS/. Turkey will not face any problems with natural gas imports from Russia during this winter, and it is the consequence of Ankara’s balanced foreign policy, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday in the southeastern city of Malatya, broadcast by the state television channel TRT.

"Turkey’s balanced policy in regard to the Ukraine crisis has won approval around the world. Had we gone along with the critics, now we would have had to worry like Europeans about how to survive the coming winter. However, Ankara has embarked on a different path, so we have no problems with gas," Erdogan said.

The Turkish president added that "Turkey is transforming into a major gas hub, which is the hope of the world."

Speaking at the Russian Energy Week forum, Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed creating the largest gas hub in Europe in Turkey and redirecting the volume of gas, the transit of which is no longer possible through the Nord Stream, to this hub. According to him, it may imply building another gas pipeline system and creating a hub in Turkey, through which gas will be supplied to third countries, primarily European ones, if they are interested.

The creation of a gas hub in Turkey was discussed on October 13 at talks between the Russian and Turkish presidents in Astana on the sidelines of the summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA).