Sun, Nov 22 2009

Kiev says will pay Moscow for gas, demands formal apology

Fri, Jun 05 2009 16:24 CET byNick Iliev 986 Views
Kiev says will pay Moscow for gas, demands formal apology

Photo: Kieran Doherty

Ukraine will pay its gas bill to Moscow on June 5, while a Kiev government spokesperson has said that Ukraine expects a formal apology from Moscow for the hype generated in the last few days which prompted speculation about yet another gas crisis, Reuters has reported.

Russia warned on June 3 of an impending gas crisis in Europe again, as supplies transiting Ukraine were likely to be shut, should Kiev fail to resolve the bill with Gazprom.

"We will wire the money during the day," said Naftogaz spokesperson Valentin Zemlyanski, as quoted by Reuters.

Meanwhile, Ukraine President Viktor Yushchenko has confirmed in a statement that payment was likely to be processed "inside an hour".

Ukraine has also demanded a formal apology from the Russians through their energy envoy Bohdan Sokolovski, Interfax Ukraine has reported. Meanwhile Gazprom has so far declined to comment on the matter.

"We expect, after the payment is completed, an apology to follow from the Russian side, considering these incorrect and humiliating statements regarding Ukraine's inability to pay for its gas," Sokolovsky said.

Reportedly, Ukraine needs to pay $657 million by June 7, a sum which also incorporated the $500 million worth of gas that was placed in underground storage.

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