EU says Russia, Ukraine ready for talks over gas spat
Wednesday, January 7, 2009 at 8:01 am
Both Russia and Ukraine are ready to begin talks over the increasingly bitter dispute over gas supplies, a minister from current EU, President of the Czech Republic said.
Speaking in Berlin after a meeting with Gazprom’s Vice President Alexander Medvedev, Industry Minister Martin Riman said the “only solution” to the crisis is “to get straight to the negotiating table.”
“The Russian side is ready to take this step. We are also. And I consider, after the talks in Kiev, that the Ukrainian side is also ready,” Riman added.
Before arriving in Berlin, an EU delegation met Ukrainian officials in Kiev to hear their side of the story.
The minister said the EU was not in a position to judge which of the two sides in the dispute was in the wrong but stressed, “we do know that we cannot afford to have customers in Europe waiting for gas deliveries.”
Many European countries reported sudden and sharp supply shortfalls yesterday, with nations in southern and eastern Europe who depend most heavily on Russia the hardest hit.
For his part, Medvedev called for Ukraine to come as soon as possible back to the negotiating table “wherever this table will be found.”
(Agencies)
( This post is from an independent writer. The opinions and views expressed herein are those of the author and are not endorsed by APakistanNews.Com.)
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