The Kremlin has announced that Russia will demand payments in rubles for other exports, and that Western sanctions have accelerated the erosion of confidence in the US dollar and the euro.
Regarding Russia's demand for payments in rubles for gas, the RIA quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying, "I have no doubts that in the future this will be extended to new groups of goods."
"Buyers will pay in euros as they used to ... but the payments will eventually be delivered to the seller, which is Gazprom, specifically in rubles, by buying Russian rubles in euros," Peskov was quoted by the Russian news agency TASS as saying.
He called it a "prototype of a system" with ruble payments, and noted that it will increasingly be used in foreign trade relations.
Russia is seeking to reduce the use of the dollar in the country's economic sectors, due to the sanctions imposed on it by the United States and a large number of Western countries.
Open accounts in rubles to pay gas purchases
With the Russian economy faltering due to the unprecedented international sanctions, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the European Union countries that they must open accounts in rubles to pay for Russian gas, hinting that the current contracts will be suspended in the event of non-payment.
"We offer countries (not friendly to Russia) a clear and transparent mechanism for buying Russian natural gas, as they must open accounts in rubles in Russian banks to make gas payments," Putin said last Thursday.
He added that he had signed a decree on natural gas trade with unfriendly countries in rubles, including the European Union, and the decree entered into force as of yesterday, Friday, April 1st.
In response to the Russian war, the Lithuanian Energy Ministry said - yesterday evening - Saturday - that Lithuania has stopped importing gas from Moscow, at a time when the region's governments are seeking to reduce their dependence on Moscow.
"We are the first country in the European Union among the countries that receive supplies from Gazprom to achieve complete independence from Russian gas supplies," Lithuanian Energy Minister Dainius Kreves said in a statement.