By Iulian Ernst in Bucharest The president of the unrecognised separatist Transnistria region in Moldova, Vadim Krasnoselsky, held talks in Moscow on January 14 on overcoming the energy crisis, the head of state's press secretary Denis Podgorny reported.

The crisis prompted a question: will the breakaway region, occupied by Russia since 1992, survive without Russian gas? Free-of-charge Russian gas had been the backbone of Transnistria's economy and ensured the preservation of the breakaway region and its de facto independence from Moldova.

One option is Russia to start shipments through the Balkan corridor (Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania), without Moldova paying off the arrears, an analyst explained.

The prime minister of Moldova's separatist Transniestria region said Monday that the abrupt curtailment of Russian gas supplies that plunged the region into an energy crisis has also shattered both its exports and imports.