Ukraine, Russia in Energy Dispute Over $7b Gas Bill
From Global Times
Ukraine and Russia were on Monday locked in a high-stakes energy dispute after Kiev refused to pay a stunning $7 billion bill for energy it allegedly promised to purchase from Moscow but never did.
The new crisis in relations between the two uneasy neighbors came just as Ukraine signed a $10 billion shale gas project with Royal Dutch Shell, a deal that could relieve the country’s painful dependence on Russian gas.
It also comes four years after Russia’s gas giant Gazprom interrupted pipeline deliveries to Europe in a reminder of what bilateral disputes can do to unsuspecting clients in distant locales.
“We are not going to pay it,” a high-ranking Ukrainian official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
