MOSCOW, April 28 - Ukraine and Russia on Thursday began formal negotiations aimed at amending the 10-year natural gas supply agreement signed in 2009 in response to Kiev’s
persistent demands for lower natural gas prices.

Energy Minister Yuriy Boyko travelled to Moscow for a meeting with Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller on Thursday to begin the talks, the Energy Ministry reported in a statement.

The talks are a breakthrough after Russia has been refusing to discuss even the idea of amending the agreement over the past 12 months.