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The prime ministers of Bulgaria, Slovakia and Moldova have called on Russia and Ukraine to resolve their gas transit dispute as soon as possible.

It is a bilateral row, and the issue of trust in Ukraine and Russia could become one of the main risks, they said.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev said at a meeting with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin that "the issue of trust in Ukraine and Russia can represent the greatest risk to them." The Russian-Ukrainian dispute "should not take third nations hostage," he said.

Stanishev called on the two countries to find a solution to their gas transit problem as soon as possible. The Bulgarian prime minister said he can put forth a number of proposals regarding the issue, including those of a technical nature.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico told the same meeting that Ukraine and Russia have produced various documents, but "we cannot act as judges" in this bilateral issue.

Fico described European countries as "hostages of the situation". Slovakia has a signed gas supply contract and pays world market prices as part of it, the Slovak prime minister said. That is why, all barriers hampering the transit of gas deliveries must be removed, he said, adding that he has a number of proposals that should be discussed by experts.

Fico also said he had already told the Ukrainian prime minister "Ukraine is losing the trust" of its European partners because of its behavior.

Addressing the meeting, Moldovan Prime Minister Zinaida Greceanii said that her country "has found itself in a very complex situation," especially the Transdniestrian region, which has virtually been left without gas.

The amount of gas consumed by Moldova's industrial enterprises has already halved, she said.

"Economic agents need to tackle this issue," Greceanii said. "We very much hope that the issue will be solved soon because our consumers do not understand why they should freeze when there is a contract for gas supplies," she added.