Chisinau and Moscow bring new leverage to bear on Transnistria, Russian headlines read

“Chisinau and Moscow bring new leverage to bear on Transnistria” Nezavisimaia Gazeta reads. A new high-pressure gas main “Tocuz-Cainari-Mereni which allows supplying Moldova with Russian gas, going around the territory of the unrecognised republic, has been open last week. Once in use, Russia and Moldova can cut off the supply of Russian gas to Transnistria without any problems. Ministers and the president of the country stated during a field trip at the site that this is a strategic target for the country, without mentioning whether the construction is somehow related to the Transnistrian issue. They have only suggested that the gas pipe will fully meet the needs of the capital city and of more localities in the Anenii Noi, Causeni and Ialoveni districts. Experts say it’s very possible for the “argument for disconnections” to be brought into the talks with the Tiraspol regime. The Moscow-Chisinau relations have considerably improved in the last few months. Russia has settled the issue on resuming the import of Moldovan wine, and the Russian electricity export from the Cuciurgan power station to the EU has started in July, the Russian daily newspaper reads. At the same time, the Moscow-Tiraspol relations are cooling down. Under these circumstances, blocking the main is enough for Transnistria to remain without natural gas. The Tocuz-Cainari-Mereni gas pipe has a 62.5 km length and a transporting capacity of 800 mln cubic metres yearly. Its construction has been done in a record time: since February to present, its cost being of about 200 mln lei.