MOSCOW, April 29 (RIA Novosti) - Russia could pay
Ukraine in advance for the transit of Russian gas to enable
Ukraine's Naftogaz to pay for Russian gas supplies, a source in
the Russian delegation said Wednesday.
Advance payments "will enable Naftogaz of Ukraine to pay
for April gas supplies," the source said.
Gazprom expressed concerns earlier in the day over
Ukraine's ability to pay for gas.
"Gas will not be sold on credit. In this respect, we are
concerned over the situation in Ukraine, taking into
consideration its low ability to pay and political
instability," said Viktor Valov, deputy head of the gas
monopoly's department for contacts with former Soviet republics.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin discussed all aspects of the
gas issue with his Ukrainian counterpart, Yulia Tymoshenko,
when they met in Moscow on Wednesday.
After the talks, Tymoshenko said that on the specific
issue of gas intended for storage facilities rather than
consumers, Kiev had proposed that Moscow pay in advance for the
transit of the gas, allowing Ukraine to use the receipts to pay
the costs of pumping gas into its underground reservoirs.
"The Ukrainian side has proposed signing an
intergovernmental agreement whereby [Russia] would pay in
advance for [Ukraine's] transit services, a scheme that we will
be able to use to cover the costs involved in the pumping of
gas into underground storage facilities," the Ukrainian prime
minister said.
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