Medvedev, Yanukovych ink accords

KIEV, Ukraine, May 18 (UPI) -- Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed pacts with Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, but a possible natural gas merger remains thorny, officials said.

Medvedev, visiting Kiev for two days, signed agreements concerning border demarcation, aerospace, interbank cooperation and cooperation between intelligence services, the Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported Tuesday. However, officials said they expected difficulties in talks on natural gas after Ukrainian officials were less than enthusiastic about a proposal by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to merge Gazprom and Naftogaz, the countries' main state energy holdings.

Speaking to reporters after Monday's talks, Medvedev said mutual trade should be worth $35 billion in 2010 and should increase to $100 billion in a year, RIA Novosti said.

Whether Medvedev and Yanukovych will discuss a Gazprom-Naftogaz merger remained unclear, RIA Novosti said. Yanukovych has said Kiev would participate in a merger only on fully equal terms.

The Ukrainian leader said no energy deal would be reached during Medvedev's visit but Gazprom Chief Executive Officer Alexei Miller indicated talks on melding the companies would continue.

About 80 percent of Russia's gas exports to Europe are delivered by Ukrainian pipelines. Gazprom twice in the past four years cut supplies to Ukraine because of pricing disputes.

Also Monday, Medvedev and Yanukovych lit oil lamps at a memorial to the Holodomor famine in the 1930s, which observers said was noteworthy because pro-Western former President Viktor Yushchenko angered Russian officials by demanding the famine be recognized as genocide by Soviet leader Josef Stalin.