Russian state-controlled natural-gas giant
OAO Gazprom OGZPY +7.43% Gazprom OAO ADS said Tuesday it would raise natural-gas prices for Ukraine—a move that ratchets up financial pressure on Kiev and raises the economic stakes in the standoff between Moscow and Western Europe.
Russia has cut off gas supplies to Ukraine twice before in recent years, in 2006 and 2009, in both cases citing pricing disputes. Gazprom Chief Executive
Alexei Miller on Tuesday told state television the company would cancel Ukraine’s special price discounts starting in April. He cited Ukraine’s failure to live up to its contractual obligations…
Russia’s Interfax news agency quoted Russian Prime Minister
Dmitry Medvedev saying Gazprom’s actions were “justified” as Ukraine hasn’t yet made full payment for February gas deliveries.
In a televised talk with reporters, Russian President
Vladimir Putin said that Ukraine’s debt to Gazprom stood at $1.5 billion -$1.6 billion, and should Ukraine fail to make full February gas payments, that debt will go as high as $2 billion.
“In these conditions Gazprom is saying if you aren’t paying anyway, then let’s fix the price at normal level, not the discounted one,” Mr. Putin said. He said that this measure has nothing to do with the current situation in Ukraine.
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