Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Russia and Austria are ready to complete preparations soon on signing an agreement on the South Stream gas project, Interfax reported.
The South Stream project, promoted by Russian gas monopoly Gazprom (GAZP.RS) and Italian group ENI (E), would carry Russian gas under the Black Sea to Bulgaria.
During a meeting with Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann in Moscow, Putin also said Russia will support an oil link between the Slovak capital Bratislava and Schwechat in Austria, the newswire said.
South Stream is seen as a rival to the Nabucco project, advocated by the European Union, which would run a pipeline to the EU from the Caspian Sea and reduce Europe's dependency on Russian gas.
Separately, Putin said one of the goals of the South Stream project is "disciplining" Ukraine, through which much of the gas bound for Central and Western Europe currently flows, Interfax reported.