Russia continues energy brinkmanship

European energy ministers are meeting in Brussels today in an attempt to persuade Russia to resume supplies of natural gas, as the continent's crisis continues.

Ukraine is believed to have signed a new version of the deal after Moscow rejected a first version of the agreement over the weekend.

Russia had accused Ukraine of adding additional small print to the terms of an EU-brokered agreement reached over the weekend and has frustrated officials by not immediately resuming supplies.

It follows six days of disruptions to gas supplies across much of eastern Europe after a pricing dispute between Russia and Ukraine through their energy companies Gazprom and Naftogaz.

Gazprom's chief executive Alexei Miller will be in Brussels for today's meeting after the Ukrainians ended their opposition to the agreement.

The Itar-Tass news agency had said Ukraine has attempted to "evade" international control through its "uncoordinated and additional conditions" on the protocol for Russian gas transit supplies.

He added: "Ukraine's unilateral declaration, which specifies an alleged need for quite bigger gas supplies to provide for the necessary gas transit supplies, is an attempt of the Ukrainian authorities to legalise the stealing of gas."

Ukraine denies the theft of natural gas but is now reported to have dropped its conditions.

The Reuters news agency quoted an unnamed Gazprom official as saying: "The deal needs to be re-signed anyway by all parties. Only then monitors will start arriving at gas compressor stations and gas will resume flowing."