Ukraine lays down strict condition for transiting Russian gas

"I would like to comment on the statement of Russian Foreign Ministry’s representative Pankin. He said: ‘We are ready to continue the Ukrainian transit on the terms we need.’ In short, the transit via the territory of Ukraine can occur on standard European terms, not the terms of the Russian Federation," Chief Operating Officer of the Naftogaz Group Yuri Vitrenko posted on Facebook, commenting on the statement made by Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation, Alexander Pankin.

According to Vitrenko, if the Russian Federation continues to provide Gazprom with the exclusive opportunities for transiting gas from the territory of the Russian Federation to Europe through Ukraine and at the same time Gazprom does not agree to standard European terms, "Naftogaz will have a real opportunity to get about $10 billion in compensation for the lack of transit after 2019 through the new arbitration proceedings, which have already begun."