Moscow, Muharram 12, 1436, November 05, 2014, SPA -- Russian energy company Gazprom has received a transfer of 1.45 billion dollars from Ukraine to partially pay off the country's gas debts, a company spokesman confirmed on Wednesday, according to dpa. Ukrainian energy company Naftogas received permission from political leaders in Kiev on Tuesday to transfer the amount, following an EU-mediated deal signed by Russia and Ukraine to ensure Ukraine's gas supplies through the winter. The deal ended a protracted gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine prompted by the billions in arrears, and exacerbated by ongoing conflict between pro-Russian separatists and Ukraine government troops in the eastern Donbass region. The standoff prompted concerns in the EU that gas supplies would be disrupted across the continent. --SPA 14:35 LOCAL TIME 11:35 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w