After nearly three-week long deadlock, Russia and Ukraine have signed a gas deal which will allow the national monopoly Gazprom to pump Siberian natural gas to the former Soviet neighbour and the European countries that face unprecedented chilly weather.
After nearly three-week long deadlock, Russia and Ukraine have signed a gas deal which will allow the national monopoly Gazprom to pump Siberian natural gas to the former Soviet neighbour and the European countries that face unprecedented chilly weather.
Russian Gazprom and Ukrainian Naftogaz CEOs, Alexei Miller and Oleh Dubyna inked the documents in the presence of prime ministers of the two nations - Vladimir Putin and Yulia Timoshenko.
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After 10-hour long marathon negotiations, which ended in the early hours yesterday, Putin and Timoshenko finally agreed on the terms of Russian gas supplies to Ukraine in 2009 and unblocking its transit to the European Union member states stopped from January 7, after Moscow accused Kiev of 'stealing' gas going to the West.
According to the agreements, Russia and Ukraine have finally switched to European market formula for calculating gas price from January 1.
However, Ukraine will enjoy a 20 per cent discount to the market price it pays for gas in 2009. From next year, both countries will switch to full market price.
After yesterday's signing ceremony, Putin explained that the national energy majors have signed two contracts: "A contract to supply gas to Ukraine and a contract for transit that are long-term for ten years."
"We will resume gas transit immediately after this gas gets into Ukraine's gas pipeline system," Timoshenko said after talks with Putin.
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