Brussels -- The mechanism for a gas discount for Ukraine proposed by Russia is unacceptable, therefore the last round of trilateral talks involving the EU was not fruitful enough, Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister Yuriy Prodan has said.
“In practice, we have remained at the level of agreements reached on June 2 [the previous round of negotiations],” he told reporters early on Tuesday, June 10 in Brussels after a seven-hour meeting.
He said that although there was the consent of the parties to resolve the issue through a package deal, which would determine the issue of the price and the payment of the gas debt, the Russian side had changed its position on the formation of the price during the ongoing negotiations.
“Gazprom offers a mechanism for price formation, setting respective discounts on duties,” Prodan said.
He said that such a decision on duties is made by the Russian government and could be cancelled at any time.
“Of course, such a mechanism does not suit the Ukrainian side,” Prodan said.
He also said that the European Commission has made certain proposals that the parties agreed to consider, but he did not specify the details of these proposals.
