Earlier this year, President Putin announced that countries that were hostile to Russia would have to pay for Russian gas in rubles.
Russian president Vladimir Putin appointed a task force on Monday to consider the country’s foreign trade levies.
According to the news agency Reuters, the task of the working group is to consider, among other things, the payment terms in foreign trade of countries declared by Russia to be “unfriendly”.
Russia considers the countries of the European Union, the United States, Britain, Australia, Canada, Japan and Switzerland to be “unfriendly”.
Putin announced earlier this year that countries that are hostile to Russia will have to pay for rubles in Russian rubles.
The demand was later clarified that “unfriendly” countries should open an account with Russian Gazprombank, to which countries can pay for natural gas in euros or dollars. The account currencies will then be converted into rubles.
Poland and Bulgaria have not agreed to the deal, and gas giant Gazprom stopped supplying them with natural gas in April.
Read more: Russia’s demands for gas have confused Europe – even experts disagree on what exactly is at stake
Putinin under the regulation, the working group now appointed will propose “infrastructure” for international payments with “unfriendly” countries. The system includes ruble payments.
The working group is also considering payment terms in rubles and other currencies with countries that Russia considers friendly.
The working group is chaired by an advisor to the president Maxim Oreshkinand includes the Governor of the Central Bank of Russia Elvira Nabiullina.