MOSCOW, 6 Mar RIA Novosti/Prime. Energy Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Demchyshyn believes that Kiev must go to shut off the gas supply samovozgoranii Luhansk and Donetsk national republics due to the debts of local power suppliers.

"If they do not pay, We want to disable. This is not because they are fighters, but because they do not pay", he said in an interview to the newspaper.

According to Demchishin, Naftogaz received payment assumed to be 20% of delivered from August to the South-East of Ukraine 1, 5 billion cubic meters of gas. Monthly Naftogaz spend 60-100 million dollars on gas supplies in the Donbass, the Minister said.

"We save on the payment of pensions, We save on infrastructure, We save on medicine, hospitals, kindergartens, and pay for gas for the East (Ukraine-ed). It looks foolish, " said Demchyshyn.

Kiev, February 19, stopped gas supply to the South-East of Ukraine, explaining the technical damage to the pipelines at the end of hostilities in the Donbas." Gazprom for gas supply in the region has utilized GIS "Prokhorovka" and "Platoo" on the borders of Rostov, Luhansk and Donetsk regions.

later the Ministry of energy of Ukraine and Naftogaz has stated many times that continue to supply gas in these regions. On Thursday Demchyshyn said that the gas in these areas comes from "Gazprom" and " Naftogaz ". However, in the self-proclaimed DND and LNR these data refute, noting that the "blue fuel" to them comes directly from Russia. UPON written request of the Russian side in the beginning of March, Gazprom put in Donbass about 100 million cubic meters of gas.

sections: Politics