BONN /Germany/, July 18. /TASS/. Russia is ready to negotiate possible continuation of gas supplies via Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday after talks with his German counterpart, Heiko Maas.

"We appreciate Berlin’s principled support for the resolution of issues of Europe’s energy security, including its support for the construction of the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline," he said. "It is a purely commercial initiative called to ensure Europe’s energy security by means of diversification of supply routes and minimization of transit risks."

"Russia is ready to negotiate options to continue [gas] supplies via the Ukrainian route. It is open for an agreement on that matter on economically justified and implementable terms," he stressed.