* Russia's state-run energy giant Gazprom employs foreign company SGS to estimate volume of natural gas allegedly stolen by Ukraine from Russian deliveries to Europe

// Jan. 03, 2006 - 07:14 GMT

BERLIN, January 3 (RIA Novosti, Olga Semyonova) – The government of Germany speaks for a mutually advantageous compromise between Russia and Ukraine on the gas issue, its press office said Tuesday.

// Jan. 03, 2006 - 07:45 GMT

MOSCOW, January 3 (RIA Novosti, Irina Chumakova) – The Foreign Ministry of Russia says it is possible to speak about the timeframe of signing a Russian-Georgian peace treaty only after both countries normalize bilateral relations, Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin said Tuesday.

// Jan. 03, 2006 - 08:21 GMT

// Jan. 03, 2006 - 09:51 GMT

// Jan. 03, 2006 - 09:55 GMT

// Jan. 03, 2006 - 09:59 GMT

MOSCOW, January 3 (RIA Novosti) – Ukraine siphoned off 118.7 million cu m of Russian export gas on January 2–3, an official spokesman for Russian natural gas giant Gazprom said Tuesday.

// Jan. 03, 2006 - 10:11 GMT

MOSCOW, January 3 (RIA Novosti) – Russian natural gas giant Gazprom has completed work to supply required gas volumes to European consumers, Gazprom official spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov said Tuesday.

// Jan. 03, 2006 - 10:20 GMT

Russia was restoring full gas deliveries to European states on Tuesday, effectively easing a blockade on Ukraine, but the Kremlin's row with its ex-Soviet neighbor that had triggered the sanction was still bubbling.

// Jan. 03, 2006 - 10:22 GMT

Oil prices rose on Tuesday, Jan. 3, extending year-end gains after a brief cut in Russian natural gas supplies to Europe rattled traders and threatened to drive up demand for oil-based heating fuels, <i>Reuters</i> reported.

// Jan. 03, 2006 - 10:25 GMT