March 29, 2024

Russia, Ukraine agree to kick-start stalled gas talks

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (L) and Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko (R) shake hands during a summit in Belarus' capital of Minsk on August 26, 2014 (AFP Photo / Sergey Bondarenko)

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin (L) and Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko (R) shake hands during a summit in Belarus’ capital of Minsk on August 26, 2014 (AFP Photo / Sergey Bondarenko)

​Leaders of Russia and Ukraine have decided to resume talks on energy issues between the two countries in September, as fears of gas delivery disruptions and Kiev’s unwillingness to settle disputes and pay bills threaten Europe’s energy security.

Following an intense
round of direct talks between President Vladimir Putin and his
Ukrainian counterpart Petro Poroshenko, the head of the Russian
state said that both leaders were able to reach an agreement on
the resumption of consultations on energy and gas.

Yet Putin said, there are “a lot of concrete questions,”
stressing that while Russia fully complies with all the
conditions of the gas contracts with Ukraine, the actions of
Naftogaz create risks for gas transit to Europe.

In June, Russia’s national gas company Gazprom stopped gas
deliveries to Ukraine over chronic late payment and an unpaid
bill of over $5 billion.

“We believe, just as President Poroshenko, too, that it is
essential to resume our dialogue on energy, including gas-related
problems,”
Putin said. The gas supply issue is currently
“in a deadlock,” the Russian leader said, “but all
the same it is necessary to discuss it.”

“It has been agreed that the Contact Group must resume its
work as soon as possible,”
Putin said, adding the EU is also
interested in the discussions.

Meanwhile, the EU’s Commissioner on Energy, Guenther Oettinger
emphasized the need of “reaching an intermediate agreement on
gas,”
without awaiting the verdict from the Stockholm
arbitration court. In June, after Gazprom switched Naftogaz to a
prepayment plan, both companies have filed lawsuits against each
other at the Stockholm Arbitration Court.

Reuters / Konstantin Grishin

However for now, Oettinger stressed, the EU is not worried about
potential problems with gas deliveries to Europe via Ukraine.
“There is no actual concern,” he said on the sidelines
of the Customs Union-Ukraine-EU meeting in the Belarusian
capital.

Ukrainian Energy Minister Yuriy Prodan, however, claims the
reliability of Russian gas supplies to Europe depends solely on
Gazprom, as Ukraine has no transit contracts with European
states.

“At the moment, Gazprom is the only one who is responsible
for the gas transit. Who signed contracts with European
companies? Gazprom did. The Ukrainian gas transit operator has no
contract with Europeans at present,”
he said.

Russian Energy Minister Aleksandr Novak said that Moscow is not
planning to discuss amendments to terms of the transit agreement
after the three-party talks resume.

“We have not discussed this today. … But our position is as
follows: the transit contract is in force until 2019 and it
cannot be reviewed at least till that time,”
the energy
minister said, noting that Russia does not consider the
possibility of the EU purchasing its gas at the Russian-Ukrainian
border.

The next round of talks on the gas issue will be held in
September, President Poroshenko announced. “It is agreed that
on September 6 the next consultations on energy issues with the
participation of the European Commissioner Oettinger and Minister
of Fuel and Energy of Russia and Ukraine will be held.”

Ukraine imports nearly 50 percent of its gas from Russia, which
in 2013 amounted to 27.7 billion cubic meters. If Ukraine cut off
Russian gas transit, it would hit Europe, which sources 15
percent of its energy from Russia.

For more watch Irina Galushko’s report:


Video:
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Article source: http://rt.com/business/183008-gas-negotiations-putin-poroshenko/

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