Europe hostage to the war-Ukraine Gazprom

The European Commission will convene a coordination group to discuss the crisis between the Russian gas giant and Ukraine, caused by a refusal to Kiev to pay its outstanding debt. Deliveries of Russian gas to Europe could be affected.

Ukraine could draw gas in the pipeline that crosses the country
Ukraine could draw gas in the pipeline that crosses the country
The European Commission will convene Tuesday, March 11 a special meeting of its coordination group on gas to discuss the crisis between Gazprom and Ukraine, announced the spokesman for the European Commissioner for Energy Andris Piebalgs. This coordinating group meets energy expert from each of 27 member countries and representatives of the Commission. It should logically invite a representative Russian and a Ukrainian representative, even if they are free not to answer this invitation, "added the spokesman.

The European Commissioner for Energy Andris Piebalgs also drew Russians and Ukrainians to "make every effort to achieve a speedy and lasting solution to their dispute." Brussels also expects both parties to ensure that gas supplies to the European Union will not be affected.

This announcement is made in response to the crisis between Moscow and Kiev, which has taken a sharp turn Tuesday, March 4 yesterday and this morning on March 5, but that appears to be calm in the early afternoon. Gazprom and Ukraine are in fact close to an agreement on gas deliveries first to the second.

On Wednesday morning, in fact, Gazprom, the world leader in Russian gas production, accused the Ukraine want to draw 60 million cubic meters of gas in the 356.6 million who pass through its territory into Europe, 80% of Russian deliveries account for 25% of gas consumed in the European Union. "It is a volume that Gazprom will deliver to the Ukrainian border, but which will fail to European consumers," insisted heavily a spokesman for Gazprom.

He had a beautiful game to speak as well. Indeed, Natogaz, the group Public Ukrainian gas, had not be excluded that disrupted deliveries of Russian gas to Europe, as was the case in 2006, during the previous gas war between Kiev and Moscow. "In the event that Gazprom would continue to violate brutally technical agreements between the two countries by lowering the supply of gas from Central Asia to Ukraine, Naftogaz would reserve the right to undertake adequate measures and asymmetric to protect its consumers," declared the Ukrainian gas company.

If the Ukrainian prime minister, Yulia Tymoshenko, immediately reiterated Wednesday that his country will "move towards the European Union all the gas that Russia will deliver for transit," but she was called into question by the Ukrainian president he own. It was "compelled" to attract "once again" its attention on the actions "insufficient and inadequate" of the Ukrainian government for the resolution of the gas crisis between Moscow and Kiev.

The president accuses the prime minister not to implement the agreement prinicipe concluded on February 12 last with Moscow to resolve the crisis in arrears of debt of Ukraine to Gazprom and fewer pattern of supply of gas.

In reaction to this failure of the negotiations, the Russian giant Gazprom announced Monday, March 3, having reduced its gas deliveries by 25% (from 35%, according to the Ukrainians). Gazprom has reduced by 25% additional deliveries Tuesday, March 4, and does not reduce them further in the coming days, announced Tuesday his spokesman, Sergei Kouprianov, "if the Ukrainian side failed to return to the table negotiations. "

The elected president of Russia Dmitry Medvedev, also head of the board of Gazprom, Ukraine drew to "intensify its efforts" to resolve the crisis bilaterally gas. In a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, the foal Putin stressed that Moscow hoped for intensified efforts to Kiev to settle as soon as possible the problem of debt for gas delivered.