Russia, European Commission discuss Ukraine-EU accord

Moscow, Sep 16 (IANS/EFE) Russian President Vladimir Putin and European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso have discussed over telephone the postponement of the proposed partnership between Ukraine and the European Union, the Kremlin announced Tuesday.

A Kremlin statement said that special attention was paid to the practical implementation of the consensus reached following the trilateral consultations this month to postpone until Jan 1, 2016, the implementation of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU.

In their conversation, Putin and Barroso also stressed the importance of continuing dialogue to ensure the EU's regular supply of Russian natural gas through Ukrainian territory.

Putin and Barroso also agreed on the need to strictly enforce the ceasefire agreement in eastern Ukraine.

On Monday, Russia called to formally document the consensus reached Friday to postpone the implementation of the Association Agreement between Kiev and Brussels.

Russian officials stressed that it was important that both Kiev and Brussels hear the arguments that the agreement, as currently written, is detrimental to their interests.

After months of Russian threats to withdraw preferential measures in Russian-Ukrainian trade relations in the context of post-Soviet Commonwealth of Independent States, the EU, Ukraine and Russia agreed to postpone the EU-Ukraine partnership.

The Kremlin maintains that the association between Ukraine and the EU will hurt the Russian economy, as its market will be filled with cheap European goods.

--IANS/EFE

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