Russia's gas monopoly Gazprom resumed supplies to Ukraine Monday, in a
development that will help the country meet its energy needs through
the harsh winter months.
Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller said supplies,
which were suspended in the spring, recommenced earlier after the
company received $234 million out of a promised $500 million prepayment
from Kiev.
The deal, which was signed last month with the help of
the European Union, will ensure that Ukraine will receive Russian gas
for six months through March 2016.
Past gas disputes between
Russia and Ukraine have led to cutoffs of supply. One standoff in 2009
caused serious disruptions in shipments EU countries in the dead of
winter. Temperatures in Ukraine can drop to as cold as -4 degrees
Fahrenheit (-20 degrees Celsius) in winter, and most homes in Ukraine
rely on piped gas for central heating.
Last winter, Russia and Ukraine struck an emergency deal on gas prices, but that expired.
EU-sponsored
talks seeking a similar accord for the coming winter began in March.
Under the deal, Russia lowered the price it charged Ukraine to the same
level granted to neighboring countries, from $251 per 1,000 cubic meters
to about $230.
The European Commission has pledged at least $500 million of aid to Ukraine for the gas supplies.
Russia's
annexation of Crimea from Ukraine and its support for separatist rebels
in the east soured relations between the two countries. Ukraine has
since been trying to cut its dependence on Russia gas, buying shipments
from European nations which had bought it from Russia at a lower price.
(AP)