“We have a contract with Ukraine on pumping our gas ... over the next five years we will pump up to 40 billion cubic meters, in the best years we pumped, in my opinion, almost 200,” Putin said.
He added that if "normal relations" were maintained, Russia would continue to pump a significant portion of gas through Ukraine.
"The monopoly possibility of gas transit gives rise to the illusion that it is possible to inflate prices to the skies for this transit, on the one hand, on the other hand, try to lower the price of gas as low as possible, which is purchased for Ukraine in direct contracts between Russia and Ukraine," he said. Russian leader.
He recalled that now Ukraine receives $ 1.5 billion from Russia for transit, and could receive $ 3-5 billion.
“We broke everything ourselves with our own hands,” concluded Putin.
At the same time, he said that Russia is ready to load the Ukrainian gas transportation system in the future after the expiration of the transit contract, if an agreement is reached with Kiev.
Earlier, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that the Russian side has no task to suspend gas supplies through Ukraine, and Russia has never used energy and its natural resources as an element of pressure or blackmail.
At the same time, Naftogaz Ukrainy emphasized that the launch of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline threatens to lose the country's revenues from transit, as well as the loss of the “security component”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called Nord Stream 2 a trump card in the hands of Russia.