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Moscow- Russian gas monopoly Gazprom is facing a shortfall of about 1.1 billion dollars in lost exports to Europe as a result of its gas dispute with Ukraine, President Dmitry Medvedev said Wednesday.

"Since January 1, Gazprom has not collected 1.1 billion dollars in export payments under contracts for gas deliveries to Europe," Medvedev said in talks with Gazprom chief Alexei Miller, reported news agency Interfax.

Moscow - Seven Central Asian workers were killed when a fire broke out during construction of an underground garage in Moscow on Tuesday, emergency services officials said.

"Seven people have been killed and three injured, two of them are women," said Igor Kuryakov, a spokesman for the city's emergency services.

"They are all Tajik nationals, who lived and worked on the garage site," he added, saying the blaze spread quickly amid the make-shift housing where about 100 workers were living on the construction site under an apartment complex in south-east Moscow.

Moscow  - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Monday urged his Ukrainian counterpart to provide for gas experts to be quickly deployed to monitor gas flows to Europe - a key condition for Russian reopen the taps.

Medvedev, who spoke by phone with President Viktor Yushchenko late Monday, said Russia was ready to immediately resume negotiations on a new contract for gas shipments to Ukraine in 2009, the Kremlin said.

Moscow  - At least seven people were killed in a crash in the Altai mountains of a helicopter that was flying high-ranking Russian officials on a hunting outing, reported the government of the Russian Republic of Altai on Sunday.

The report cited by Interfax news agnecy stated that among those killed in the craft owned by Russian gas monopoly Gazprom was Alexander Kossopkin, the country's presidential representative in the Duma (parliament).

Previous reports of eight dead and three survivors were revised to seven dead when a fourth person was found injured. A co-pilot was among the survivors.