"At 7:00 AM, in the interest of national security, the transportation of Russian natural gas across Ukrainian territory has been halted," reports the Telegram channel of the Ministry of Energy.
Kiev has officially notified international partners about the cessation of transit due to the expiration of a five-year contract, which was not renewed at the decision of the Ukrainian side, as mentioned in the statement.
The gas transportation system infrastructure has been prepped to operate under zero transit conditions while ensuring reliable gas supply to Ukrainian consumers, noted the Ministry of Energy.
Russian "Gazprom" announced the cessation of supplies through Ukraine on the morning of January 1 stating that the supply was halted. The state company complained that this occurred during the validity of agreements with "a number of European buyers, as well as due to the "repeated and explicit refusal of the Ukrainian side" to extend the transit.