Prime minister says Ukraine can pay Gazprom bills

If Kyiv and Moscow find a compromise solution with respect to the price of gas, Ukraine will be ready within 10 days to pay off all its debts to Gazprom, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk told the German newspaper Bild in an interview, Ukrinform reported on May 29.

"If we reach a compromise on this issue [gas - ed.], then in ten days we will pay off all our debts," he said.

According to Yatseniuk, Kyiv is ready to accept only "fair and transparent market conditions" under which Moscow will not use the price of gas as a political weapon. Otherwise, Ukraine on Thursday may go to the Stockholm arbitration with a claim against Gazprom to revise the terms of the contract for gas supplies.

"The price of Russian gas for Ukraine doubled for the only reason - Ukraine made its own choice in favor of a free state, having signed the agreement with the EU," he explained.

Copyright: Ukrinform, 2014