Russia on Sunday asked the European Union to provide monitoring of Ukraine''s gas transit system and accused Ukraine of stealing gas bound for Europe, as Kiev levelled its own charges.

The exchange of accusations fuelled a furious row over payments demanded by Russia''s Gazprom for gas supplied to its neighbour, which has led to shortfalls in several European countries.

"Given that (Ukrainian state energy company) Naftogaz is not allowing monitors engaged by Gazprom into its gas monitoring stations, we sent a letter to the European Commission with proposals for ensuring independent monitoring of volumes of gas transiting Ukraine," Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov said.

"In the last 24 hours we delivered to the entry of the Ukrainian transit system 295 million cubic metres -- more than needed by European consumers -- and at the exit received 270 million cubic metres. So they stole 25 million cubic metres," he said in the latest such accusation by Russia.

But European Commission spokesman Ferran Tarradellas told AFP that the European Union had no plans to get involved in a dispute he described as a "bilateral problem."

A spokesman for the Czech EU presidency, which assumed leadership of the 27-member bloc from France on January 1, said there was no independent way of verifying how much gas transits through Ukraine .

"The situation is extremely unclear and there are contradictory information on the question of responsibilities," he said.