Russia, Ukraine face legal action over gas crisis, Gazprom accuses U.S.

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(RTTNews) - The collapse of a deal that failed to resolve the week-long European gas crisis is threatening to have serious repercussions, with the European Union (EU) calling for suing Russia and the Ukraine, while Russian gas monopoly OAO Gazprom dragged the United States into the controversy.

The state-owned natural gas companies of Russia and the Ukraine are facing the risk of legal action by its European customers for failing to ensure gas supply for more than a week.

Addressing the European Parliament Wednesday, the European Union (EU) Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said he would advise energy companies of the affected member-states to sue Gazprom and Naftogaz Ukrainy unless they moved fast to resume supplies.

"The current situation is unacceptable and incredible," he told the MEPs.

He said both the parties are accountable to ensure the resumption of the flow of Russian gas through the Ukraine transit facilities under a deal signed Monday by them and the EC.

He told reporters later that he would also recommend that EU member-states take legal action "if a solution is not found soon."

Many European nations, mostly in the east, have been hit by disruption in the supply of natural gas. The steep drop in gas supplies is a cause of concern for Europe, where the heating requirements increase in winter.

Hungarian gas importer Emfesz has already filed a suit against Naftogaz over the halt of gas supplies and also lodged a complaint against the Ukraine with the European Commission.

Serbian public gas supplier Srbijagas said it was considering legal action against the Ukraine, which it sees as the main culprit for Russia's decision to cut supplies.

Russian gas deliveries flowing through the Ukraine to European Union countries were not resumed as planned Tuesday, with Gazprom accusing the Ukraine of failing to carry the gas westwards, hours after the company resumed supplies across the border.

Kiev said Gazprom's choice of the metering stations is "provocative" because it set a "technologically unrealistic" procedure.

Gazprom tried to give a new version to the reason for the deadlock by saying that the Ukrainian officials, in their handling of the gas conflict, were taking orders from the United States.

In a conference call with reporters Wednesday, Gazprom deputy chief Alexander Medvedev said "It looks like they are dancing to music that is not orchestrated in Ukraine."

"It's quite clear at this hour that Ukraine has blocked all our actions in respect to a renewal of the transit of natural gas to Europe, which is unbelievable," he said.

Medvedev referred to an agreement signed by the Ukraine and the United States last month, which mentions about the "gas transit through Ukraine to Europe, which is especially suspicious."

"Now we could make some guess why Ukraine behaved in such an unreasonable way and continues to do so," he added.

The EU said its monitors, sent to the Ukraine and Russia to improve the transparency of gas deliveries, were not allowed to access technical information both in Kiev and Moscow.

The European natural gas crisis that heated up since the New Year has damaged the credibility and reliability of Russia as the supplier and the Ukraine as the facilitator of the badly needed fuel in the winter to Europe.

It also exposed the continent's insecure dependence on Russia as its major provider of natural gas.

Supply of gas to European countries through transit pipelines in the Ukraine was cut off since last Tuesday over a pricing contract dispute between the two former Soviet republics.

Following a monitoring deal agreed by the EU, Russia, and the Ukraine, Gazprom released natural gas meant for its consumers in the Balkan region, Turkey, and Moldova Tuesday.

But Kiev blocked the transit of gas to Europe because of "unacceptable transit conditions" imposed by Gazprom.

Reports say Bulgaria, which mostly depends on Russia for its gas requirements, has barely two days of reserves, while Slovakia is getting ready to restart an old Soviet nuclear power plant if gas supplies are not restored quickly.

Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico urged his Ukrainian counterpart Yulia Tymoshenko to hold talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin to resolve the dispute as soon as possible.