Russia and Ukraine reached an agreement on Thursday to pay off Ukraine's gas debt and resume talks on a supply scheme in 2008 after Russian gas monopoly Gazprom agreed to restore supplies which were cut by 50% earlier this week.
"It is unpleasant to have to say it, but I am fed up with this policy of intrigue and scheming," Viktor Yushchenko said during his visit to the ex-Soviet Central Asian republic of Tajikistan.
A day after the dispute was partially resolved, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko demanded in a letter to the president that the intermediaries supplying gas to Ukraine and distributing it in the country should be removed, and that new joint ventures should not be set up. Tymoshenko has insisted on direct deals between Gazprom and Ukraine's national energy company Naftogaz.
This runs counter to a deal reached by Yushchenko and Russia's outgoing president, Vladimir Putin, on February 12, when they agreed to remove intermediaries, which Kiev earlier blamed for accumulating its gas debt, and set up two joint ventures between Gazprom and Naftogaz.
Yushchenko said he did not understand what Tymoshenko hoped to achieve by sending the letter.
Gazprom had reduced supplies accusing Kiev of failure to pay off its $600 million gas debt and approve the new supply scheme. The decision sparked concerns in Europe, which imports 25% of its gas from Russia, mainly via Ukraine's pipeline system. A similar row at the start of 2006 affected shipments to the EU.
Yushchenko's press secretary said on Friday that talks with Russia would resume on March 11.
"A Naftogaz delegation is due to arrive in Moscow for talks on March 11," Oleksandr Shlapak said.
Yushchenko issued instructions to Naftogaz on the talks on Friday, reiterating that Gazprom's share of gas shipments and direct gas sales within Ukraine could be between 25 and 50%.
The former Soviet allies agreed last year to supply gas at $179 for 1,000 cubic meters in 2008 for Central Asian gas brought by Gazprom, the price for Russian gas was set at $315 per 1,000 cu m.
