Russia, Ukraine sign new gas deal

July 21st, 2009 Ukraine tells Biden it wants US investment for gasKIEV, Ukraine — Ukraine wants American investment to help modernize its creaky but strategic natural gas pipeline system, the country's president told U.S. Vice President Joe Biden on Tuesday.

January 26th, 2009 BRUSSELS - Ukraine has assured the European Union (EU) that the recently signed agreement on natural gas transits from Russia to Europe through its territory will be fully implemented, European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso said Tuesday. After a meeting with Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko in Brussels, Barroso said the Ukrainian leader had assured him that Kiev would stick to the gas deal even though he is not fully content with the agreement.

January 18th, 2009 MOSCOW - Russia's energy giant Gazprom and Ukraine's energy company Naftogaz Monday signed a new contract on Russian gas supplies to Ukraine. Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Moscow and Kiev had reached agreement on all issues of gas transit and supplies.

January 17th, 2009 MOSCOW - Russia and Ukraine settled their contractual dispute over gas supplies early Monday morning, bringing an end to a week-long embargo on transits to gas-starved Europe. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said in a joint televised statement they would sign a new supply contract for 2009 Monday, immediately freeing gas supplies via Ukrainian pipelines to Europe.

January 17th, 2009 MOSCOW - Gazprom is preparing documents on gas supplies to Ukraine and gas transit to Europe for signing Monday, the Russian energy giant said Sunday. 'We are working to ensure that the documents are signed Monday,' Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov said.

January 15th, 2009 Novo-OGARYOVO - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has proposed to the European Union (EU) to set up a consortium to buy from its energy giant Gazprom the amount of gas that Ukraine says is necessary to resume transit to Europe. 'We are proposing that our European partners share the risks and set up an international consortium that could buy from Gazprom the necessary amount of gas and immediately send it to Ukraine to secure gas transit to Europe,' Putin said Thursday.

January 14th, 2009 BERLIN - The gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine demonstrates to the world the need to diversify energy supplies, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Thursday. Events of recent weeks showed how a commercial dispute could impact across Europe, Brown told a news conference after talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin.

January 13th, 2009 MOSCOW - Russian gas has been stolen after being pumped into Ukraine's gas transportation system, an official spokesman for Russian energy giant Gazprom has said. Under Monday's deal with the European Union (EU) and Ukraine, Gazprom Tuesday resumed pumping gas into Ukraine for transit to Europe.

January 12th, 2009 WASHINGTON - The US government has urged Russia to immediately restore gas supply via Ukraine to the European Union (EU). 'The US welcomes the agreement brokered by the Czech presidency of the EU to enable the restoration of gas flows to European customers and provide greater transparency along the transit route,' State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Monday.

January 12th, 2009 MOSCOW - Russia resumed supplies of gas to Europe Tuesday as observer teams began measuring gas flows through Ukraine in an effort to mediate the ongoing standoff between Moscow and Kiev. Ukraine's Naftogaz said it had received a fax from Gazprom informing it 76 million cubic metres of gas had been sent through the pipelines 'at 10 a.m.

January 11th, 2009 MOSCOW/PRAGUE/BRUSSELS - Ukraine has agreed to sign a fresh accord for monitors to measure gas flow to Europe, minus the declaration that led Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to rescind the agreement, the European Commission said Monday. The move follows phone calls by commission president Jose Barroso to Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Yulia Timoshenko late Sunday night.

January 10th, 2009 MOSCOW/KIEV - Ukraine joined Russia to approve a European Union (EU) initiative for international observers to monitor Russian gas deliveries via Ukraine, raising hopes of a possible end to a Kremlin embargo on energy supplies to Europe. Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko signed the deal early Sunday, Interfax news agency reported.

January 6th, 2009 WASHINGTON - The US urged Russia and Ukraine Tuesday to end their dispute over natural gas supplies that has caused a sharp decline in shipments throughout Europe. 'Russia and Ukraine should get together, come to the table, work out the differences that exist between them in what would appear to be a commercial dispute,' State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said.

January 5th, 2009 MOSCOW - Russia has said it will further cut gas to Ukraine by 65 million cubic metres per day, the amount Moscow says Kiev is stealing from European clients further downstream. Gazprom cheif executive Alexei Miller Monday proposed the measure while briefing Prime Minsiter Vladimir Putin on the standoff since the company shut off supplies to Ukraine on Jan 1 over non-payments and a pricing dispute.

January 1st, 2009 WASHINGTON - The US Thursday urged Russia and the Ukraine to resolve their dispute over payments and debts owed for natural gas in a 'transparent, commercial manner'. In a statement issued by US Department of State acting deputy spokesman Gordon Duguid, the US said it was 'concerned' that Russia's Gazprom had cut off gas that is sold to Ukraine.