OREANDA-NEWS  Russia will fulfill all its obligations to supply gas to Europe even if Ukraine refuses to transport Russian fuel through its territory, said Dmitry Birichevsky, the director of the Foreign Ministry's Economic Cooperation Department. 

"We will be able to fulfill all obligations but this does not mean that we refuse to transit through Ukraine. If Ukraine does not want to pass our gas through its territory, which I doubt, then, probably, we can do without it. But, as far as I know, there is not being talked yet", said Birichevsky.

The Russian President Vladimir Putin said last week about Moscow's readiness to supply gas through Ukraine and after 2024, the volume and timing of contracts will depend on the needs of the European Union. 

On the air of Sputnik radio, the leading analyst of the National Energy Security Fund, an expert of the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation Igor Yushkov stressed that with the commissioning of Nord Stream-2, the possibilities of delivering gas to Europe will be significantly expand. 

According to the expert, so far Kiev has not demonstrated a desire to conduct a constructive dialogue on this issue. 

"Ukraine will need to try to preserve this transit in some volume: to give low tariffs, favorable conditions for Gazprom. And compete with other routes: with the Yamal-Europe gas pipeline, with the Turkish Stream...So far, we have not seen a constructive dialogue on the side of Ukraine. On the contrary, they are trying to "squeeze" as much money as possible, being in the status of a non-alternative transiter. But with this approach, they will not maintain transit after 2024", - the expert believes.