Sandu: Moscow's goal is to install a pro-Russian government in Chișinău

(Patria) - Moldovan President Maia Sandu stated yesterday that Russia aims to disrupt the social and economic situation in Moldova and install a pro-Russian government in Chișinău.

Sandu said this during a visit to Kyiv, where she discussed security, energy, infrastructure, trade, and mutual support on the path to the EU with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Zelensky said that he discussed with Sandu the supply of coal from Ukraine to that country, Reuters reports.

- With the cooperation of Ukraine and Moldova, it is possible to supply the entire Moldova with electricity and reduce the price of electricity in Moldova by 30 percent - Zelensky said.

Russia's Gazprom announced at the end of December 2024 that it would stop supplying gas to Moldova due to alleged debts of the company Moldovagas, Ukrinform reports.

Gazprom estimated Moldova's debt at $709 million, but Chișinău acknowledges only $8.6 million, claiming that the rest of the debt refers to gas consumed by the country on the disputed territory of Transnistria.

A state of emergency was declared in the energy sector in Moldova in mid-December, and the Ministry of Energy announced at the end of 2024 that Moldova would import most of its electricity from Romania, while 30 percent would be provided by local thermal power plants.