Putin Plans To Make ‘Unfriendly’ Countries Purchase Russian Gas In Rubles

It was updated on Mar 23, 2022, 04:44pm.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a government meeting Wednesday that countries will purchase Russian natural gas in rubles, which could make the energy crunch in Europe worse.

Putin ordered the Russian Central Bank to find a solution within a week to accept gas payments in rubles.

The United States, European Union member states, the United Kingdom and Japan have all imposed sanctions on Russia.

Around 40% of the EU's natural gas comes from Russia.

Natural gas sales were mostly in euros, dollars and sterling as of January.

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A Polish government source said that forcing payments for Russian gas to be made in rubles would be a violation of the contract. Italy, one of the biggest buyers of Russian gas, said it would likely continue payments in euros.

The Biden administration banned all imports of Russian oil and natural gas on March 8 as part of its sanctions on Russia. The EU is considering banning Russian energy imports because of opposition from a few countries that depend on Russian energy more than others. The European Commission wants to reduce the bloc's dependence on Russian gas by the end of the year.

Russia will switch gas sales to roubles for unfriendly countries.

The EU supports a ban on oil imports from Russia.