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Russian, Ukrainian Leaders Meet Tue; Gas Talks Continue

Russian, Ukrainian Leaders Meet Tue; Gas Talks Continue
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Τρι, 12 Φεβρουαρίου 2008 - 03:31
Russian President Vladimir Putin was to meet Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yushchenko Tuesday, the Kremlin said, amid crunch talks on averting a cut in Russian gas supplies to the neighboring state.
Russian President Vladimir Putin was to meet Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yushchenko Tuesday, the Kremlin said, amid crunch talks on averting a cut in Russian gas supplies to the neighboring state.

The pro-Western Ukrainian leader was to meet Putin in the Kremlin as Russia's OAO Gazprom (GAZP.RS) energy giant extended until 180 local time (1500 GMT) a deadline after which a threatened gas cut-off could kick in.

Russian state newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta noted meetings between Putin and the leader of ex-Soviet Ukraine had become a rarity and said "the number of unresolved issues and touchy subjects in bilateral relations has only grown."

Gazprom has threatened to end supplies of Russian gas to Ukraine if Kiev misses the deadline for paying a debt claimed by Moscow of $1.5 billion.

The dispute echoes a pricing row in 2006 that led to gas supply disruptions across Europe after Gazprom cut all supplies to Ukraine, a transit route to the European Union. This time Gazprom has said deliveries to the E.U. won't be disrupted.

Ukraine's economy, dominated by heavy industry, is highly dependent on imports of gas from Russia. However about 75% of this gas is extracted in the Central Asian state of Turkmenistan and transported across Russian territory.

The threatened cut-off applies to the Russian portion of the total, Gazprom has said.

The size of the Ukrainian debt is disputed by Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko. She has tied payment of the debt to her desire to simplify the murky system of intermediaries by which Ukraine pays for its Russian and Turkmen gas, a system inherited from an earlier Ukrainian government.

Russian newspapers portrayed Tymoshenko as the villain of the dispute and suggested Yushchenko was taking a more conciliatory role.

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