Russia, Ukraine, EU to discuss gas issues in May: ministry

PanARMENIAN.Net - Representatives of Russia, Ukraine and the European Union are to gather to discuss the security of Russian natural gas supplies in early May, a spokeswoman for the Russian Energy Ministry said Monday, April 28, according to RIA Novosti.

“[The meeting] is planned for the beginning of May,” the spokeswoman said, adding that the exact date will be set in the coming days.

The Russian Energy Ministry had earlier proposed holding negotiations to discuss the gas supplies on April 28 in Moscow.

The proposal came in response to a letter by EU Commissioner for Energy Guenther Oettinger, in which he suggested discussing the venue and date of upcoming trilateral talks.

Oettinger invited the Russian and Ukrainian energy ministries to participate in the talks, originally proposed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In a letter to 18 European leaders earlier this month, Putin voiced concerns about Ukraine’s debt crisis, which could disrupt Russian gas supplies to Europe. He also called for urgent consultations at the ministerial level in order to work out concerted actions to stabilize Ukraine’s economy.