Putin promises Vucic $1.4 billion to help extend TurkStream pipeline through Serbia
Russia is ready to invest $1.4 billion into Serbia’s economy in order to construct the TurkStream gas pipeline through the country, RBC news agency reports.
“We are ready to invest the necessary resources, which are approximately $ 1.4 billion,” said Russian President Vladimir Putin at a press conference with his Serbian colleague, Aleksandar Vucic. Putin added that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has supported the idea to extend the pipeline to Europe.
Earlier, in an interview with the Serbian media, Putin said that non-EU countries expect to receive Russian gas from TurkStream and get a guarantee that the project won’t be disrupted by an "arbitrary political decision of Brussels."
According to the Russian President, Gazprom is deliberating over several possible land routes of the gas pipeline in Europe. One option suggests that TurkStream will pass through Bulgaria, Serbia and Hungary.
TurkStream lies across the bottom of the Black Sea, bypassing Ukraine. The first gas pipeline connect Russia with Turkey while the second goes to Europe. The launch of the pipeline is scheduled for the end of 2019. TurkStream is expected to carry 15.75 billion cubic meters of gas per year.