Batkivschyna: Yanukovych through Kharkiv accords deprived Ukraine of chance to review 2009 gas contracts

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has deprived Ukraine of any chance to appeal to an arbitration court to challenge the gas contracts signed in 2009, the Batkivschyna Party said in a statement on Wednesday.

"A typical contract between commercial structures Naftogaz and Gazprom was personally included in golden letters by Yanukovych in the infamous Kharkiv agreements," reads the statement.

"Therefore, a business agreement, which could be reviewed or appealed at the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce at any time, has become an integral and inviolable part of the Ukrainian-Russian interstate agreement. According to international commercial law, the question has moved to the area of international public law. The Stockholm arbitration court does not consider international agreements," Batkivschyna said.

As reported, Yanukovych said in an interview with Ukrainian television channels on November 27 that Ukraine had decided to delay the filing of its lawsuit with an arbitration court contesting the price of Russian gas because it risks losing this lawsuit.

"Going to arbitration court and losing the case means legalizing this issue forever," Yanukovych said, adding that lawyers who have analyzed the situation said Ukraine has a high risk of losing such a lawsuit.

"We have now decided to postpone this issue because the risks are high. We are working," he said, reiterating that the parties are looking for solutions to this issue.

At the same time, Yanukovych said Russia would also suffer losses if it lost the Ukrainian market.

"Of course, it is unprofitable for Russia to lose such a large market," he said.