AKIPRESS.COM - Moldovan Prime Minister Ion Chicu plans to hold talks with his Russian counterpart Mikhail Mishustin at an international forum on digital economy to be held as part of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) in Almaty on January 31, TASS reported.

"There I will have a meeting with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin," Chicu wrote on his Facebook page on Monday referring to his plans for the week.

On January 24, a source in the Russian government informed TASS that the Russian prime minister would travel to Almaty to attend the EAEU forum, but there have been no official reports on the issue. That could be the new Russian head of government’s first foreign trip.

Last week, Chicu and Chairman of the Management Board of the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) Andrey Belyaninov discussed in Chisinau a number of projects, which are expected to be implemented in the country within the framework of the EAEU. One of them stipulates the creation of an agro-industrial center for purchasing agricultural products from local farmers and processing them. It should ensure ties between agricultural producers and trading companies and give farmers an opportunity to take out loans in exchange for products sought after by consumers. The project’s price tag is estimated at $50 mln.

Moldova’s President Igor Dodon earlier said that the government planned to earmark about $300 mln for infrastructure projects, which it expects to borrow from Russia. During his tenure as Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister, Dmitry Kozak likewise confirmed that the issue had been discussed. He noted that Russia must be sure that these funds would benefit Moldova’s economy and enable it to honor its commitments to repay the loan.

At the initiative of Dodon, Moldova was granted observer status in the EAEU in May 2018 by unanimous decision of the leaders of the union’s member states.