Brussels, 28/09/2010 (Agence Europe) - Commenting on Ukraine's signing of the accession protocol to the Energy Community (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, FYROM, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia and the EU), on the sidelines of the organisation's Ministerial Council in Skopje on 24 September, the European Commission, through the spokeswoman, Marlene Holzer, of Energy Commissioner Günther Oettinger, said it expected the Ukrainian parliament to ratify the agreement before the start of next year. Holzer added that, under Energy Community rules, which incorporate the acquis communautaire on the internal energy market, the Ukrainian government will have to unbundle the supply and transmission activities of national gas company Naftogaz. In July, Ukraine adopted a new law governing the gas sector and laying the foundations for the unbundling of Naftogaz, in line with Energy Community rules. It now remains to be seen if Ukraine will, indeed, implement these principles by 2012, as the new law stipulates. (E.H./transl.rt)