VLADIVOSTOK, September 3. /TASS/. The talks with Ulaanbaatar on the future of the Power of Siberia-2 gas pipeline are complex, the director of the Institute of Asian and African Studies at the Lomonosov Moscow State University Alexey Maslov told TASS on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF), adding that Russia could launch the project on its territory bypassing Mongolia if necessary.

"The Power of Siberia-2 is a gas pipeline being designed that is to run through the territory of Western Siberia to China. Some media outlets reported in August that Mongolia had allegedly not included the project in its national development plan through 2028.

"Third countries are putting much pressure on Mongolia today. We obviously see the influence of the US. Moreover, Mongolia is trying to increase its cost as a transit territory and to bargain, which is normal from the viewpoint of the negotiation process. However, it is important to bear in mind that it is hardly going to be an easy decision," he said.

In this context Maslov expressed confidence that if Mongolia fails to take a decision "a direct route outside the country will most likely be chosen." "It is obviously possible to pave the route through Russia as well," he said, adding that "theoretically a project currently called the Power of Siberia-3 is possible."

The Eastern Economic Forum is underway on the campus of the Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok on September 3-6, 2024. The main theme of the EEF this year is ‘Far East 2030. Combining strengths to create new potential’. Business activities are broken down into seven thematic blocks: ‘New contours of international cooperation’, ‘Technologies to ensure independence’, ‘Financial value system’, ‘the Russian Far East’, ‘People, education and patriotism’, ‘Transport and logistics: new routes’, and ‘Master plans: from architecture to economy’.

The Roscongress Foundation is the Forum’s organizer. TASS is the general information partner of the EEF.