There was a time when Russia could manipulate other countries with its natural gas supplies . It still can, but the threat is less effective than it once was. Ukraine's national natural gas company, Naftogaz, confirmed Wednesday that it will consider negotiating direct natural gas purchases with Russian natural gas giant Gazprom without mediation from the European Union. Ukraine's willingness to deal directly is a sign of growing assertiveness and also of how much Kiev — with help from Brussels — has been able to chip away at Moscow's ability to use gas supplies as a political weapon. Depoliticizing Natural Gas Moscow's use of energy to affect policy in not only Ukraine but also other countries in Central and Eastern Europe that import Russian gas almost exclusively was a constant theme of the 2000s and early 2010s.