Russia
agreed to restart gas exports to the European Union via Ukraine
on Tuesday morning, potentially ending supply cuts that have stoked concerns
over the Continent's energy security and left tens of thousands of Europeans
without central heat in freezing temperatures.
Further stoppages are possible, EU and Russian officials said, because disputes
remain over which side -- Moscow or
Kiev -- should provide the gas
volumes needed to pump Russia's
exports to the EU, as well as over what price Ukraine
should pay for its own gas imports from Russia.
"If there are not obstacles, supplies will be restarted tomorrow" at
8 a.m. Brussels time, Alexander Medvedev, deputy chief executive of Russian gas
monopoly OAO Gazprom, told reporters in Brussels. It would take a further 24
hours to 30 hours for the gas to reach the EU, said EU energy commissioner
Andris Piebalgs.
Monday's apparent breakthrough came when all three parties signed, for the
second time, an agreement setting the terms of reference for teams of experts
who will monitor Ukraine's
gas-transit network. Moscow had
balked at the deal on Sunday, when Kiev
attached a separate, unilateral declaration that set out Ukraine's
own position.
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said on Monday that there was
"no excuse" for further delays in resuming gas supplies.
The second winter gas stoppage to the EU in three years triggered renewed
demands for the 27-nation bloc to reduce its dependence on Russian gas. Despite
a similar disruption in 2006, the EU has taken few steps to become less reliant
on Russia. The
EU gets about a quarter of its natural gas from Russia,
though in some countries that figure rises to 100%.
An emergency meeting of EU energy ministers in Brussels
on Monday called for action to diversify supply routes and to build more
interconnections between national gas systems and more liquefied natural-gas terminals.
A follow-up meeting is set for Feb. 19.
Bulgaria, the
EU nation worst hit by the weeklong gas cut-off, said it had asked the bloc to
consider providing 900 million euros ($1.2 billion) to fund four
gas-infrastructure projects -- interconnector pipes to Romania
and to Greece,
more underground gas storage and an LNG terminal. Bulgaria
gets almost all of its gas from Russia,
via Ukraine.
At the meeting, Romania's
energy minister called for accelerating the Nabucco pipeline project, according
to an EU official. The pipeline would bring gas from the Caspian
Sea region, and perhaps from Iran
and Iraq, to
the EU via Turkey,
skirting Russia.
Nabucco, however, has been slowed by uncertainty over whether there will be
sufficient gas to fill it.
Russia, which
blames Ukraine
for the gas cut-off, has said the EU should respond by supporting two pipelines
to bring Russian gas to Europe, via the Baltic
Sea and the Black Sea. These would
circumvent Ukraine,
ending its lock on Russian gas exports to the EU. Currently, 80% of Russian gas
exports to the EU pass through Ukraine.
The gas cut-off has cost Gazprom more than $800 million in lost revenue so far
and damaged its image, according to Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
Mr. Piebalgs said the new monitoring mission would enable the EU for the first
time to determine whether Moscow or
Kiev is responsible should supplies
not flow. He also said that if supplies are disrupted again, the EU was ready
to abandon its neutrality in the dispute and assign blame.
Russian accusations that Ukraine
was stealing gas destined for the EU triggered a total cut-off in export flows
last week. Ukraine
denied theft and said it was merely taking the "technical" gas needed
to pump Russia's
gas exports to the EU.
It wasn't clear Monday evening whether, as Kiev
said in its declaration on Sunday, Ukraine
would go on taking technical gas once exports resume. Russia
promised Monday to take an uncompromising line if that happens.
"Tomorrow, we must guarantee that the amount of gas entering the Ukraine
is equal to the amount leaving Ukraine.
There must be no disparity," said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister
Alexander Grushko.
In Moscow, Sergey Markov, a
lawmaker for Mr. Putin's United Russia party, said that by insisting that Ukraine
sign up to Russia's
terms of reference for international monitors, Moscow
had shown the world that it couldn't be blackmailed. "It's the Putin principle,"
he said in a phone interview. "You'll never achieve anything by pressuring
us."