MOSCOW, January 1 (RIA Novosti) - Russian energy giant Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov told Russian television Sunday that it would be clear in the second half of the day whether part of Russian gas in transit via Ukraine is lost.
Gazprom started cutting off deliveries to Ukraine by gradually reducing pressure in the pipeline to the country at about 10 a.m. Moscow time (7 a.m. GMT).
Kupriyanov said Ukraine's refusal to accept Russia's latest proposals on the gas price dispute "put the Ukrainian economy on the verge of a disaster and may significantly deteriorate the Ukrainian population's living standards this winter."
Kupriyanov said Ukraine had "planned a conflict from the very beginning, i.e. planned to tap, or simply steal, gas intended for European consumers."
However, he said gas supplies to Europe would be ensured in full.
