Gazprom's Export CEO Alexander Medvedev was not as optimistic. He said Miller's statement was a hope, not a reality. He said that Miller was engaged in wishful thinking, and that thinking made it so. The issue has not changed over the decade: Gazprom wants to charge China using a price linked to the European market; China has never accepted this, arguing they are a developing country that cannot afford such prices. China has also claimed that the transit distance between Russian fields and China is less than between the wells and Europe; accordingly, prices should be less.
Despite these issues, Russian President Vladimir Putin remains optimistic about the Asian market. "We are thinking about entering the promising market in the Asia-Pacific region. We should find our niche here; we have every chance of doing that," he said. "The Asia-Pacific region is developing rapidly. Its consumption is growing rapidly, and Russia can play a prominent role." Putin's remarks may be fulfilled with the newly signed Rosneft contract to deliver petroleum to China, but Gazprom's $68 billion pipeline project remains mired in the inability of the negotiators to move toward an accommodation.
