Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko said his country could face a $7.8 billion penalty from Russian gas monopoly Gazprom for shortfalls in the consumption of natural gas. Local television quoted Yushchenko as saying that his country could face significant fines for violating the terms of a contract signed in January, which settled a dispute between Ukrainian utility Naftogaz and Gazprom. “For the current year, Ukraine has consumed gas worth $4 billion, half of which was paid through loans,” he said. “Besides, it has been calculated that the (possible) amount of fines for Ukraine as of today is $7.8 billion.”
Meanwhile, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso urged Ukraine to do everything in its power to prevent a repeat of last winter’s gas crisis, in which a fight with Russia over money cut off supplies to much of Europe. “European citizens must not be subject to further disruptions of gas supplies from Russia through Ukraine,” Barroso’s office said in a statement following a conversation between the commission president and Yushchenko. Ukraine has asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to speed up a $3.8-billion loan so that the former-Soviet state can buy natural gas and prevent a new crisis.