From Reuters:
Ukraine should be able to find ways of paying for Russian gas supplies within a week, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Wednesday, suggesting a standoff would end once Moscow received financial guarantees from Kyiv.
The latest round of gas talks between Moscow and Kyiv ended late on Tuesday in Brussels with no agreement in a dispute that prompted Russia to cut off gas supplies to its neighbor in mid-June, potentially hurting flows west to the European Union.
But while Novak said he was optimistic for new talks on October 29, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said he was skeptical about building ties with Russia, underlining how efforts to reach a deal are hampered by a wider political conflict between the two countries.
On Tuesday, Russia increased the pressure on Ukraine, which is dependent on Western aid, demanding assurances on how Kyiv would find the money to pay Moscow. Earlier Ukraine asked the European Union for a further 2 billion euros in credit.
Novak told reporters at an energy conference in Moscow that the two sides had almost reached a deal but that the talks came unstuck "by another issue -- where will Ukraine get the money to pay in advance for gas supplies in November and December."
"If the Ukrainians have the money, then the documents will be signed. If not, then we will wait."
More from our News Desk on Kerry's comments:
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has said freedoms are “still being threatened” in many parts of the world, “even in Europe.”
Speaking at a joint press conference with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Berlin on October 22, Kerry said, “Russia’s aggression Ukraine needs to end.”
The United States and European Union imposed sanctions on Russia following the annexation of Crimea and Moscow’s support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Kerry expressed hope that Moscow will understand "how seriously the world takes the efforts to cross the lines of sovereignty and independence of a nation.”
Steinmeier warned that the Ukraine conflict is “so combustible that it still threatens the peaceful order in Europe."
Kerry's visit to Germany comes ahead of next month's 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Just in from our News Desk:
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has said freedoms are still being threatened in many parts of the world, including Europe.
Speaking at a joint press conference with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Berlin on October 22, Kerry expressed hope that Russia will understand how seriously the world is ready to protect Ukraine’s sovereignty.
Kerry’s visit is timed to mark the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.