MOSCOW, December 13 (RIA Novosti) - Russian natural gas monopoly Gazprom has said it will stop gas deliveries to Ukraine if a contract is not signed by January 1, Gazprom Chief Executive Alexei Miller said in a live interview with Russia Today TV currently being aired.
"No contract has been signed for Russian gas supplies to Ukraine or for Russian gas transit via Ukraine," Miller said.
The current contracts will expire December 31, 2005.
"If no deal is signed by January 1, 2006, Gazprom will not be bound to deliver gas to Ukraine, as it will be illegal - it is illegal to deliver commodities outside Russia's borders without a contract," Miller told the TV channel.
The Gazprom head also said that even if the sides failed to sign a contract on natural gas transit via Ukraine, the company would still supply gas to Europe in full.
"Today Gazprom has decided on who will be on duty in Moscow, at the ready so to say, to provide Russian gas supplies to Europe if need be," Miller said.
"If Ukraine conducts what they call 'technical sampling' of gas, which is, in other words, simply [gas] siphoning, gas deliveries to Europe will be reduced accordingly," Miller told Russia Today. "If it becomes a regular practice, then Russian [gas] exports will decrease proportionately."
