The Russian and Ukranian energy ministers are due to meet for talks organised by the European Commission in Brussels later Friday.
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Vice-President Šefčovič said, “The agreement on the terms of the new Winter Package is a crucial step towards ensuring that Ukraine has sufficient gas supplies in the coming winter and that there is no threat to the continued reliable gas transit from Russian Federation to the EU“.
According to Demchyshyn, Ukraine can start pumping gas right after the full trilateral deal is signed “sometime next week”.
The government website quoted him as saying: “Russian planes with the Russian tricolour have no business in Ukrainian airports”.
Ukraine transports around 15 percent of the gas consumed by European Union nations – a figure likely to fall with Russia’s construction of new links bypassing its war-torn neighbor.
The agreement still needs to be formally approved by the governments in Moscow and Kiev.
Kiev and its Western allies accuse Russian Federation of involvement in the deadly crisis in east Ukraine; however, Moscow has vehemently denied the allegation. Next month, Ukraine will store 2 billion cubic meters of gas from Gazprom, assisted by European Union financing.
Ukraine has made “a genuine effort to live up to its Minsk commitments, and has shown considerable restraint in the face of provocations and attacks”, the secretary said, referring to a February ceasefire agreement. Many Western countries blame Moscow for fueling the violence in Ukraine and introduced several rounds of anti-Russia sanctions to exert pressure on the Kremlin.
“Our assessment is that Ukraine will need anywhere from 5 to 7 billion cubic meters [bcm] of gas from October 1 to March 31,” Miller said. Ukraine’s Naftogaz will pay Russia’s Gazprom $500 million for those supplies, with the money supplied by European and worldwide financial institutions. Its eastern members suffered shortfalls at least twice in the past decade during similar standoffs between Russian Federation and Ukraine.
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A spokeswoman for Ukraine’s Ministry of Infrastructure confirmed the ban, in effect on October. 25, would be at the “beginning of the winter navigation period”.
