Ukraine PM promises not to raise gas price before year end.

KIEV, October 4 (Itar-Tass) - Natural gas prices for the Ukrainian
population and utility heating supply enterprises will not be raised
before the end of the year, Prime Minister Yulia Timoshenko said during a
visit to the Ivano-Frankovsk region on Saturday.

"There will be no price increases, despite any circumstances," the
prime minister said. She also stressed that questions of the payment for
natural gas in the sphere of heating energy should be settled by the local
authorities. According to her, this issue will be discussed with the
leadership pf regions at a telephone conference on October 5.
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Ideas, proposals voiced at RF-Japan forum to be studied-RF Dpty FM.


IRKUTSK, October 4 (Itar-Tass) - The dialogue that has taken place
within the framework of the VI Russian-Japanese Forum is an important
supplement to the consultations and exchanges held at the official level.
In the view of Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexei Borodavkin, the
ideas, proposals, initiatives voiced at the meeting on Saturday will be
considered and studied.
"Among interesting ideas that were voiced I would like to name
proposals on drafting a joint collection of documents on Russian-Japanese
relations," the diplomat said commenting on the meeting results. "On the
further development of twin-city relations and interregional contacts, on
how we should develop economic relations so that they meet the interests
of both Russia and Japan," he noted. "And from the Russian side, first of
all, they should correspond to the needs of development of the economy and
social sphere of Siberia and the Far East," Borodavkin noted.
According to him, "all this will be attentively considered, studied,
worked out and then will be taken to the manufacturing shop, so to speak."
Borodavkin positively assessed the proposal voiced at the forum to
develop in the water area of the four South Kuril islands full-fledged and
large-scale Russian-Japanese economic cooperation. He believes that there
are good opportunities here for the implementation of joint projects for
fishing, fish processing, sea farming, development of transport and other
infrastructure.
"We believe that the Japanese side, especially with taking into
account the change of the Tokyo administration, should take a new look at
these ideas and proposals and keenly and actively respond to them," the RF
diplomat said.
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Encouraging talks underway on Korean Peninsula denuclearisation-FM.


IRKUTSK, October 4 (Itar-Tass) - Encouraging talks are underway on the
problem of denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, Russian Deputy
Foreign Minister Alexei Borodavkin who took part in the VI
Russian-Japanese Forum in Irkutsk told Itar-Tass on Saturday.
According to the diplomat, "The North Korean leadership has said
recently that it is ready to take part both in the bilateral and
multilateral dialogue on issues of denuclearisation of the Korean
Peninsula." "Of course, we welcome this, as we see in this a more flexible
and more constructive approach to the settlement of this problem by means
of negotiating processes," the RF deputy minister said stressing that
"there is no other way of settling this problem."
"At present the sides that took part in the six-sided process are in
consultations among themselves through diplomatic channels and they also
consult other sides, in particular, the United Nations, International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on how to better continue this negotiating
process," he said.
Borodavkin stressed that "Russia takes an active part in informal
consultations." "Over the past few months I have had contacts with North
Korean officials and South Korean officials, also with the Americans and
Japanese," he noted. "Much time and attention to this issue has been given
on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session, during meetings and
conversations of RF Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in New York," he said.
However, in the view of Borodavkin, "It is early so far to speak about
the essence of the reached agreements, but we feel that there's progress."
"This is encouraging and we will continue the constructive work, will hold
consultations and will try to get the result with all our partners in the
six-sided process," the diplomat emphasised.
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