RPT-Russia wants Ukraine to repay $2.4 bln gas debt

MOSCOW, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has ordered gas export monopoly Gazprom (GAZP.MM) to ask Ukraine to pay back its gas debt to Russia, which Gazprom estimates at $2.4 billion, local agencies reported on Thursday.

"We need to fully clarify ourselves with Ukraine's debt and recover it on a good-will or compulsory basis. Because it is stated in the current legislation and within the frames of our bilateral relationships," Interfax quoted Medvedev as saying to Gazprom's chief executive Alexei Miller at a meeting in the Kremlin.

Miller said Ukraine's gas debt to Russia amounted to $2.4 billion, Interfax said. (Reporting by Tanya Mosolova, editing by Toni Vorobyova)