Friday, 9 January 2009
European Union experts will arrive in Ukraine Friday to monitor Russian gas transit to Europe, the Ukrainian government said Thursday.
"Today the European Union adopted Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko's proposal to send to Ukraine experts who will study the reasons for disruption of Russian natural gas supplies to the EU and will establish who is responsible for that. Technical experts will arrive in Ukraine on Friday," the government press service said.
Russia says Ukraine's guarantees of unhindered gas transit are one of the conditions for resumption of gas supplies to Ukrainian borders.
Ukrainian energy company Naftogaz chief Oleh Dubyna said at gas talks in Brussels Thursday that Ukraine is ready to allow EU experts into its territory for them to control Russian gas transit, including when the gas enters Ukraine and when it leaves the country.
Ukraine has not allowed independent observers to its gas measuring stations since January 1.
Previous talks between Russia and Ukraine ended on New Year's Eve with no agreement on how to settle Kiev's gas debts or on a contract for 2009 deliveries.
Russian energy giant Gazprom halted on Wednesday gas supplies to Ukraine for transit to Europe. According to the company, the latest check established that Ukraine was not carrying any gas to Europe despite Russia's move to continue gas supplies to Ukraine through the Sudzha station.
Kiev closed on Wednesday the fourth, final gas pipeline pumping Russian gas to Europe. The latest closure added Austria, the Czech Republic, Romania and Slovakia to the growing list of countries receiving no Russian gas.
The three other pipelines were closed on Tuesday, ending deliveries via Ukraine to Hungary, Serbia, Macedonia, Croatia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece, and Bosnia and seriously disrupting supplies to Italy, Poland, France and Slovenia.
Gazprom earlier accused Ukraine of stealing more than 86 million cubic meters of gas since the start of the year, but Kiev denied the accusations saying that Russia was trying to discredit Ukraine as a reliable gas transit partner.
