UNIAN
Three-way negotiations on Russian gas supplies to Ukraine in the "summer" period starting from April 1, 2015 - will be held on March 20 between Ukraine, the European Union, and Russia," Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk said at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday.
In addition to these gas negotiations, the Ukrainian government intends to do whatever is necessary to increase the supply of European gas to Ukraine, Yatseniuk said.
"We have trilateral negotiations planned for March 20 on the supply of natural gas to Ukraine,” Yatseniuk said.
“In June [2014] we did not agree to Russian conditions, and that is why we are not paying $485 (per thousand cubic meters) for gas, and not $385. The price in the first quarter amounted to $325. And I hope that on March 20, negotiations will be held with our European partners, including Russia, to reach an agreement on the supply of natural gas in the summer period. During the summer we need to pump the maximum amount of gas into our storage facilities.
"We have to purchase cheaper gas from the European Union. That is a priority. It's cheaper and more stable," Yatseniuk said, adding that Russia remains one of the country’s gas suppliers, but the diversification of Ukraine’s energy supplies is still a key task of the government.