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Russia, Belarus to hold talks on gas price at level of deputy PMs - minister

Earlier, Novak said that the current price of Russian gas supplies to Belarus stood at $132 per 1,000 cubic meters

MOSCOW, May 28. /TASS/. Deputy prime ministers of Russia and Belarus will hold next talks on Belarus’ debt for gas supplies and its price, Russian Energy Minister Aleksandr Novak told reporters on Saturday.

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Answering a reporter’s question if he would have a next meeting with Belarusian Energy Minister Vladimir Potupchik in the near future, Novak said: "Not yet. The next meeting will be held at the level of a deputy prime minister and Semashko (the Belarusian deputy prime minister - eds. TASS)."

The talks are expected to focus on Belarus’ main debt for gas, he said but neither named the exact date of the meeting nor the representative from Russia.

Earlier, Novak said that the current price of Russian gas supplies to Belarus stood at $132 per 1,000 cubic meters.

According to the Energy Ministry, Belarus owes the Russian gas giant Gazprom $125mln for the first four months of 2016. Potupchik said that Belarus had no debt to repay to Russia and that the price of $73 per 1,000 cubic meters would be fair. He also said that Belarus "speaks not about a discount (on gas) but about market gas prices.".

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