A message on gas transit posted on Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko's website contains elements of political blackmail, a Russian presidential aide said Thursday.
Yushchenko addressed an open letter to President Dmitry Medvedev proposing that natural gas contracts be changed as soon as possible to avoid problems with gas supplies to Ukraine and its transit on to Europe. According to Yushchenko, problems could arise as early as in spring.
"No one in Russia has the slightest desire to participate in Ukrainian domestic battles. We are categorically against Europe's energy security being dependent on Ukrainian politicians' personal ambitions," Sergei Prikhodko said.
"The attempt to frighten Russia and Europe with forecasts of a gas transit crisis is something from the sphere of political blackmail," he said, adding that it was a pity that the Russian authorities had to learn about the message on the Internet.
"Russia and other countries have repeatedly heard the premier and president [of Ukraine] say totally different things," Prikhodko said.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Yulia Tymoshenko agreed during a meeting in early September that Ukraine would not be charged any penalties for the purchase of Russian natural gas in amounts smaller than those stipulated in the contract.
But Yushchenko said then that fines are envisioned by the contract, and oral agreements should be transformed into written ones.
On Thursday, Putin arrived in Ukraine's Crimea ahead of talks with Tymoshenko, due to touch upon gas issues as well.
Ukraine transits around 80% of Russia's Europe-bound gas. Russia, which supplies around one fifth of Europe's gas, briefly shut down supplies via Ukraine's pipeline system at the start of the year during a dispute with Kiev over unpaid debt. The conflict was resolved in January, when Putin and Tymoshenko agreed deals on deliveries to and gas transit through Ukraine for 2009.
MOSCOW, November 19 (RIA Novosti)
