REUTERS
A shorter, interim contract for 12 months will not work, the prime minister says.
The Ukraine Government stands on the position that the country seeks a long-term gas transit contract with Russia, which should stipulate mutually beneficial conditions for all parties, Prime Minister of Ukraine Oleksiy Honcharuk says.
"Ukraine will be satisfied with the long-term contract, which, on the one hand, would ensure the full use of our gas transmission system, and on the other hand, the energy security of Ukraine and Europe," Honcharuk told a Kyiv briefing, commenting on Gazprom's offer to Ukraine to sign a 12-month deal.
Honcharuk added that Ukraine a shorter, interim contract for 12 months would not suit Ukraine.
The prime minister emphasized that the government is interested in achieving a gas transit deal from 2020 that would lay down mutually beneficial conditions.
Read alsoUkraine's energy minister calls Gazprom's conditions on gas transit unacceptable
"We shouldn't be getting some kind of interim option for one year, so that the Russians could complete their infrastructure [bypass pipelines] and then put political pressure on EU countries and Ukraine. We want predictable, mutually beneficial, and stable working conditions with our European partners and under European rules," he stressed.
According to the prime minister, by the end of the year the gas transmission system operator is expected to become certified. "We intend to complete the relevant certification by the end of the year and offer our partners contracts on European terms according to European rules," he added.
As UNIAN reported earlier, on November 18, Naftogaz received from Russia's Gazprom an official offer to extend the transit contract from January 2020 for 12 months.
Naftogaz explained that the European Commission recommended Gazprom to conclude a long-term gas transit contract under European rules with the new Ukrainian gas transmission system operator, and did not provide Ukraine recommendations to purchase gas directly from Russia.