Moscow/Kiev - Russia has halted all supplies of gas to Western European customers in an escalation of the energy dispute between Moscow and Ukraine, a spokesman for Ukrainian gas monopoly Naftogaz said on Thursday morning.

The Naftogaz statement, reported by the Interfax agency, came after Austrian Economy Minister Reinhold Mitterlehner told local radio on Wednesday that his country had received no supplies from Russia via Ukraine overnight.

The sharp escalation in the energy war between Ukraine and Russia led to big cuts in gas supplies across Europe Tuesday amid freezing winter temperatures.

The second reduction since January 1 by Russian gas monopolist Gazprom saw shipments cut to just 72 million cubic meters of gas for European consumers, from 260 million on Monday and an average of 300 million previously.

Officials in both Russia and Ukraine confirmed plans to renew talks on ending the conflict in Moscow on Thursday. But the sides remained far apart on a host of issues.

Moscow - Russian export monopoly Gazprom said Tuesday it has been ready "any minute" to sit across the negotiating table from Ukrainian officials in a deadlock over gas supplies that has drastically cut volumes of Russian gas reaching Europe via Ukraine.

"We are surprised by the (Naftogaz Ukrainy's) announcement it was ready to continue talks on January 8, we are ready to start talks at any minute, given the critical situation," a spokesman for the company Sergei Kupryanov said in a televised statement.

"Gazprom" was and will be the reliable supplier of gas," he added.

Kiev - Russia's most recent cut in natural gas pumped into Ukrainian pipelines could affect European supplies "in hours," an official for the Ukrainian natural gas monopolist Naftogaz Ukrainy said Tuesday.

The Russian natural gas monopolist Gazprom early Tuesday morning reduced gas supplies to Ukraine to 92 million cubic metres per day, a volume roughly one third of average deliveries during winter months, said Valentyn Zemliansky, a Naftogaz spokesman.

Vienna - Russia cut its supply of natural gas to Austria by 90 per cent Monday night, Austrian oil and gas supplier OMV AG said Tuesday.

The reduction came amid Ukraine's conflict with Russian state gas company Gazprom, which pipes its gas to Western Europe through the Ukraine.

OMV would be able to keep up its delivery to end customers by using its stock of 1.7 billion cubic metres, the company said.

"That way, the supply situation is secured," said Werner Auli, one of OMV's chief executives.

However, the amount of natural gas piped from Austria to Hungary fell on Tuesday, illustrating the effects of the spat between the Ukraine and Russia.

Istanbul - Russian gas supplies to Turkey via Ukrainian pipelines have been cut amid the ongoing dispute over gas between Kiev and Moscow, the Turkish government said Tuesday.