The position of Belarus on the price of Russian gas supplies has not changed, the next negotiations are scheduled to take place in Moscow in May. This is what the Energy Minister of Belarus Uladzimir Patupchyk told reporters after meeting with his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak.
“We do not owe anything to the Russian side, we are not asking for any gas discounts. We are asking for the execution of the legal framework. The issue is very delicate, we sit down and are working on these issues. We were heard today. It makes us happy. The next meeting will take place soon. We will meet here, in Moscow. Our position is absolutely clear, it is transparent. Our position has not changed. It seems that the Russian side begins to hear us and understand what we are asking,” TASS quoted Patupchyk.
On May 12, in Mahiliou, where the sitting of the Union State Council of Ministers was held, the Energy Minister of Russia said that the debt of Belarus before Gazprom in January-April exceeded 125 million dollars.
Uladzimir Patupchyk, in turn, said that Minsk does not recognize the existence of the debt to Gazprom for the gas supplied. According to him, the sides have different interpretations of the intergovernmental agreement. “Russia believes that there is a price of Yamal, and we believe that from January 1, 2015 equally profitable market prices should be applied,”explained Patupchyk.
Negotiations on this subject have been conducted since January. Russian officials have repeatedly declared it unfeasible to reduce the gas price for Belarus. The Belarusian side believes that it has the right to expect the price reduction to 80 dollars per thousand cubic meters instead of the current 142.
