London, Jan 15 : Vladimir Putin has a reputation for being something of a tough man, but now the Russian Prime Minister has shown his softer side by turning his hand to art.

His debut painting pays tribute to Ukrainian folklore and will be auctioned for charity at the weekend.

Painted with pastels, Putin's artwork depicts a wintery night sky seen through a peasant''s window framed by traditional lace curtains embroidered with beads and red stitching.

Berlin - The gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine demonstrates to the world the need to diversify energy supplies, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Thursday.

Events of recent weeks showed how a commercial dispute could impact across Europe, Brown told a news conference after talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin.

Merkel urged Russia and Ukraine to return to the negotiating table and resolve their differences so that gas supplies could be resumed as quickly as possible.

Moscow/Kiev  - Ukraine's government is divided by internal differences over entering new talks with Russia to end the gas delivery impasse, news reports said Thursday.

Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency that a new round of talks on resuming gas transit to the European Union was scheduled for Saturday in Moscow.

However, President Viktor Yushchenko on Wednesday evening rejected the Kremlin's invitation a crisis summit with all gas-importing countries on Saturday as not suitable.

Brussels/Strasbourg, France  - The European Union on Wednesday threatened to ditch Russia and Ukraine as gas suppliers and to encourage legal action against their state-owned energy companies unless they immediately resume shipments to Europe.

"Russia and Ukraine are showing they are incapable of delivering on their commitments to some European member states," European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso told the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

Kiev  - Ukraine's natural gas monopoly Naftogaz Ukrainy on Wednesday made Russia a detailed offer on Europe energy shipments, suggesting an immediate return to pre-crisis volumes.

Russia would, according to the terms of the proposal, send into Ukraine's national pipeline network 318 million cubic metres of gas daily, with 296 million cubic metres reaching European customers.

The difference, some 22 million cubic metres, would be used by Ukraine's pipeline system to maintain pressure.

Moscow- President Dm