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Ukraine’s PM Tymoshenko to visit Moscow February 20

By RIA Novosti

Kiev : Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko will visit Moscow on Wednesday, February 20, her energy adviser, Oleksandr Gudyma, said on Tuesday.

Tymoshenko, reelected as premier by parliament in December, earlier planned to visit Russia on February 21-22, when Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko is due to attend an informal CIS summit in Moscow.

Ukrainian media reported last week that Yushchenko had asked Tymoshenko to cancel her visit to Moscow, but the reports were later denied by Foreign Minister Volodymyr Ohryzko.

“The visit will take place, and naturally there will be talks. Tymoshenko will hold a meeting with the president later today to clarify the issues discussed by both presidents [Ukraine’s Viktor Yushchenko and Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Moscow],” Gudyma said.

Putin and Yushchenko agreed last Tuesday on a roadmap to settle Ukraine’s debts for Russian gas supplies. An agreement was also reached to establish direct fuel supplies between Russian energy giant Gazprom and Ukraine’s national oil and gas company Naftogaz.

A presidential spokesman said both Yushchenko and Tymoshenko would have independent programs in Moscow.

The Ukrainian premier is primarily set to discuss gas supplies with her Russian counterpart Viktor Zubkov.