BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic said on Wednesday he was aiming to broker more talks between Russia and Ukraine around the middle of this month to try to extend a discount on gas prices for Kiev.
Russia, Ukraine and the European Commission held a preliminary round of gas supply talks in Brussels last month.
Sefcovic said he had written to Russia and Ukraine following the talks and was hopeful of being able to negotiate more favourable terms for Kiev than its long-term contract with Gazprom (MM:GAZP). He added he hoped for another round of talks in the middle of this month.
Russia will extend gas price discounts for Ukraine into the second quarter, TASS news agency reported President Vladimir Putin as saying on Tuesday, but any further decisions would be taken in three months and depend on the price of oil.