Kasyanov Says Pipeline Agreement Reached with Poland

[mastodon]

The Polish government will reach a decision on the construction of a gas pipeline on Polish territory from Belarus to Slovakia, bypassing Ukraine, in the near future, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov said at a news conference after a meeting with his Polish counterpart Jerzy Buzek.

Experts submitted documents to the Polish government recently, regarding the route of the pipeline, the Russian prime minister said.

According to Kasyanov, this is the second option for the pipeline route, which "removes Polish anxieties that the pipeline might cause damage to ecologically clean regions in the country." "I hope that a final decision on the route of the pipeline will be reached without delay," he said.

According to the Russian prime minister, the issue of building the pipeline to bypass Ukraine should not be tied to the construction of the Yamal-Western Europe pipeline, which also passes through Poland.

The Russian side "is ready to consider the Polish side's worries" connected with the construction of the Yamal-Western Europe pipeline.

Kasyanov confirmed that Russia will guarantee Poland's fuel requirements.
//Interfax

[vdanishevski]

I think there's no unusual in this I think it's the effective way to take Ukraine under presure

[mastodon]

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov has said that phrases like "construction of gas pipelines bypassing Ukraine" should not be used any more.

Talking to reporters after meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart Anatoliy Kinakh on Friday, Kasyanov said that Russia's participation in the construction of pipelines in the territory of Poland and Belarus "is just implementation of previous contracts and no alternative to Ukraine".

During the talks in Minsk the parts had agreed that Russia would participate in modernization of Ukrainian oil and gas industry facilities. Ukraine is the main route for transportation of Russian natural gas to Europe and Russia has no intention of making it a second-rate one, Kasyanov said.
//RIA-Novosti