Pipe

In Ukraine they are finding out who negotiated with Russia

The Ukrainian president and government are pointing fingers at each other on the question of which of them promised to transfer part of the assets of the Ukrainian gas transportation system (GTS) to Russia. At a press conference on February 1, Vladimir Putin said that the Ukrainian side intends to offer part of these assets for parity participation in Russian gas production assets. But on February 6, the Rada overwhelmingly banned manipulation of the gas transportation system , and the opposition accused the authorities of betraying national interests.

Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych said that the government “did not negotiate with Russia about the already existing gas transportation system,” but agreed on the completion of the “branch” Bogorodchany-Uzhgorod. Deputy Prime Minister for the Fuel and Energy Complex Andrei Klyuev and Energy Minister Yuri Boyko made it clear that the negotiations on the GTS were conducted by Viktor Yushchenko, and his representatives “went to Moscow” with a certain message. This information was denied yesterday by Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Vitaly Gaiduk. He stated that the Ukrainian president was not involved in the gas agreements.

But Deputy Secretary of State of the President Alexander Chaly confirmed that his boss Viktor Baloga went to Moscow to receive a draft memorandum on strategic partnership in the fuel and energy complex. The memorandum discussed “the implementation of common projects in the energy sector, including through the exchange of assets,” Chaly said. But Yushchenko did not consider it possible to sign this document .

“With a high degree of probability, “influence groups” surrounded by the president and the government could have been involved in separate negotiations regarding the joint use of the gas transportation system with Russia,” Vladimir Fesenko, head of the Ukrainian Penta Institute, told Vremya Novostei. — So, in addition to the Prime Minister and the Minister of Energy, Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Klyuev and structures close to the famous Donetsk businessman Rinat Akhmetov could participate in the negotiations. From Yushchenko’s side, Secretary of State Viktor Baloga, as well as persons representing the Industrial Union of Donbass in the president’s entourage, could participate in negotiations with the Kremlin. According to the expert, the negotiations were unlikely to discuss “the surrender of Ukraine’s strategic reserve—that is, the exchange of gas fields for a pipeline.” Probably, Russia was offered only different schemes for managing the consortium, gas storage facilities and gas distribution networks.

Our interlocutor is confident that the Rada’s ban on manipulating the gas transportation system, although “limites the search for a mutually beneficial exchange, does not put an end to the issue of its joint use with Russia.” After all, Ukrainian business groups associated with the production of metal and chemicals are interested in reducing costs, and therefore in access to Russian gas fields. Mr. Fesenko does not rule out that the “prohibitive” law could be changed in parliament, provided that the main oppositionist Yulia Tymoshenko is involved in the settlement of the “gas” process. The fact that the top people started talking about the return of the Itera company to the Ukrainian market, for which Tymoshenko stood up, speaks to the likelihood of such a scenario.

Svetlana STEPANENKO, Kyiv