REUTERS
"Victorious" reports claiming the agreement has been reached between the countries come primarily from the Russian side amid fears of new U.S. sanctions.
Negotiations between Ukraine and Russia on extending the transit of Russian gas after the end of 2019 are ongoing, head of the Naftogaz Andriy Kobolyev said.
"At this point in time, as far as I know, the talks are still ongoing. If any agreements are signed, this will be reported. The process is currently underway," Kobolyev told Radio NV.
To a clarifying question about "victorious" reports on an already reached agreement between the two countries, Kobolyev noted that such messages come primarily from the Russian side.
"Speaking of various kinds of reports that have recently been actively thrown into the media space, into the diplomatic space, mainly by the Russian Federation and another, European state. My interpretation of these reports is that there are very serious concerns among our counterparties about the introduction of U.S. sanctions," Kobolyev said. "I know for sure that Gazprom's lobbyists made a lot of efforts in the United States and in the Senate, attempting to say: guys, everything is fine there, it's all good with Ukraine, don’t worry, there will be an agreement, there's no need to impose sanctions."
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Today, December 20, Ukraine and Russia, with the mediation of the European Commission, will continue in Minsk their negotiations on gas transit after 2019. The parties could reach a final decision on signing a new contract, as reported earlier.
Following yesterday's round of trilateral gas talks held in Berlin, EC Vice President Maros Sefcovic said that the parties had reached an "agreement in principle" on all key issues.
The existing transit contract between Ukraine and Russian Gazprom was concluded in 2009 for a period of 10 years. It expires on January 1, 2020.
The U.S. Senate has approved a package of sanctions aimed at hindering the completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, bypassing Ukraine and delivering gas from Russia to Germany via the Baltic Sea.