U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman and Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said Friday that this ex-Soviet republic must boost its energy independence and diversify sources. Tymoshenko said that "the issue of diversification of energy supply resources is of the utmost importance." Earlier this month, fuel shortages erupted after Russian oil exporters reduced supplies to this country of 48 million. Tymoshenko herself came under criticism over her attempts to institute restrictive fiscal and monetary policies, which were blamed for the shortages. Bodman said after meeting Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko on Thursday that the U.S. leadership is "very committed to help Ukraine to increase its energy independence, diversify its energy trade and restructure its energy sector into a more-robust part of the economy." Tymoshenko and Bodman, who is on a two-day visit to Ukraine, also discussed replacement of Russian-made nuclear fuel in the country's 15 operational nuclear reactors with fuel rods produced by the U.S.-based Westinghouse company. "Activities aimed at diversifying sources of nuclear fuel are welcome and we believe that such an activity will improve our energy independence," Tymoshenko told reporters.
