Following Gazprom’s confirmation that it accepted a higher price for natural gas from Turkmenistan, acting Minister of Economy Anatoliy Kinakh said that gas prices and transit fees are linked and that Ukraine must use this argument to increase the fees. Alexander Medvedev, Gazprom’s deputy CEO, noted that the surge in price would automatically be transferred to Ukraine. The Ukrainian economy is highly dependent on natural gas, receiving some 70% of it from Russia. Russia accounts for 25% of gas supplies to Europe, 80% of which is transported via Ukraine.