Russian energy giant Gazprom confirmed yesterday that Ukraine has at long last settled a debt of nearly $2bn USD. The Ukrainian state energy firm Naftogaz has similarly published that it transferred a sum totaling $1.65bn USD to Gazprom accounts in Moscow. The payment comes as the second of two commiserate payments made to Gazprom over the last several months. Representatives from Ukraine and Russia had been deadlocked over payments due to the ongoing crisis in Ukraine’s east, and the two sides had been at loggerheads for far longer over late payments. Energy relations between the two sides reached a low point when Russia cut off all natural gas exports to Ukraine for a period of six months.

The European Union has served as a mediator throughout negotiations, as well as a key provider of aid to the Ukrainian government. Despite the resolution of Ukraine’s debt to Gazprom, the Ukrainian economy remains in dire straits and dependent on the International Monetary Fund, which allotted an estimated $17bn to bailout the Ukrainian economy. Had the IMF failed to approve large-scale loans it is unlikely that the country would have been able to repay its debts.

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News Briefs

• In a speech given recently by Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammadov, the Turkmen leader asserted that sustainable public transport sectors feature prominently among the country’s national objectives. The speech was further backed by a resolution put forward by Turkmenistan in the United Nations General Assembly promoting the “role of transport and transit corridors in ensuring international cooperation.”

• Gazprom Kyrgyzstan will not have to pay a 35 percent customs duty on natural gas imports. The Kyrgyz offshoot of the Russian energy behemoth will be made exempt from duty payments as Kyrgyzstan officially integrates into the Russia-fostered Custom Union.

• China’s Karamay City, a bubbling metropolis in China’s Xinjiang province, recently found new cause for excitement due to a large oil discovery close to the city. Xinjiang was already known for being rich in coal and natural gas, though oil makes the region all the more attractive for investors, both domestically and internationally.

• The Uzbek parliament recently ratified a new law designed to foment outside investment in the country’s economy. The Uzbek government announced that as a result of the law and similar measures geared towards bringing in more foreign direct investment, that the country has experienced a 12.3% increase in FDI since 2013. Spanish chemical firm, MAXAM, has experienced success within the country, as has the Itochu Corporation from Japan.