KIEV, Oct. 14 ??“ Vitaliy Hayduk, the newly appointed top security advisor to President Viktor Yushchenko, will focus on securing alternative supplies of natural gas and crude oil to Ukraine, Defense Minister Anatoliy Hrytsenko said Saturday.

Hrytsenko said securing the alternative energy supplies is one of the two key issues, in addition to joining NATO, to be addressed to secure political sovereignty and avoid dependence on Russia.