TODAY: EU and Russia agree on monitoring of gas deliveries, but gas has yet to resume flowing; Putin defends Russia’s position again, using Georgia as an example; US and Georgia to sign charter.

The gas row continues, with hundreds of thousands of European homes (…and zoos…) still without gas, and Bulgaria, Serbia and Bosnia-Hercegovina suffering the most.  Progress has been made in that a deal has been reached through which the EU will begin monitoring gas deliveries via Ukraine, with Gazprom stipulating that the monitoring commission is ‘multi-layered‘, but this report suggests that Ukraine may not yet have agreed to the deal, and another says that there are still ‘no assurances‘ that the gas flow will be turned back on, quoting a senior EU diplomat as saying, ‘We have reasons to believe that there is hope that the Russians will resume gas supplies.’  Despite the preliminary agreement, by Russia’s own admission, it could still take many days before supplies resume, and NATO has implied that it will intervene to assist its allies if the situation continues.  ‘Along with the United States, the Europeans also must come up with a strategy for moderating or containing Mr. Putin’s bullying ways.’