KIEV, Feb. 21 - Ukraine may stop direct purchases of natural gas from Turkmenistan should Ashgabat insist on hiking gas prices later this year, Oleksiy Ivchenko, chairman of the national oil and gas company Naftogaz Ukrayiny, said.

???Most likely, we will not play in this game,??? Ivchenko said in a television interview Tuesday. If the prices increase ???it will make no sense to continue negotiations with Turkmenistan.???