Ukraine, Russia Remain at Loggerheads

Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko told Germany’s Angela Merkel that his country has not yet received the payment for the transit of Russian gas to the EU countries for September and October, adding that Moscow keeps violating international law.

‘The Head of State emphasizes that sending another Russian humanitarian convoy bypassing the Ukrainian border and customs control, as well as avoiding its coordination with the International Committee of the Red Cross is a brutal violation of the international law, which negatively affects peaceful settlement and humanitarian situation in the Donbas,’ reads the note released on Friday. 

Poroshenko confirmed Kiev have already paid the first tranche of its gas debt.

Meanwhile, Naftogaz said it has received a prepayment bill from Gazprom.

‘The scope and schedule of prepayments depend on how much gas and when Naftogaz orders from Gazprom,’ Naftogaz wrote in a separate statement. 

Earlier this week, Naftogaz said it will order gas from Gazprom flexibly and without take-or-pay provisions. The Ukrainian company clarified that it will prefer to make use of gas from UGS or resources imported from the EU.