You're reading: Novak says Russia to exert maximum effort to uphold gas contracts with Europe

Russia will exert maximum effort to uphold its gas contracts with Europe, the Energy Ministry said in a statement. 

“Amid the meeting of the leaders and the Customs Union countries and the Ukrainian president and representatives of the European Commission in Minsk the day before, at which agreement was reached to extend trilateral consultations on delivery of Russian gas to European countries through Ukraine, individual statements from Ukrainian political figures that Russia is planning to halt gas transit to the EU are perplexing,” Energy Minister Alexander Novak is quoted in the statement as saying.

“We can only qualify this as an absolutely groundless attempt to sow confusion or disinform European consumers of Russian gas,” he said.

“It must be stressed that Russia’s position on this issue remains unchanged: we will exert maximum effort to ensure fulfillment of our contractual obligations to European importers regardless of the current political situation in one or another transit country. In achieving that goal, we are fully open to constructive dialog with all interested partners, including the competent and responsible representatives of Ukraine,” Novak said.