Peskov says ruble payments for gas not to start on Thursday

MOSCOW, Mar 30 (PRIME) -- The new mechanism of payment for Russian natural gas exports in rubles will take some time, not from Thursday, President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday.

Putin earlier ordered the government to create a mechanism of switching Gazprom’s contracts with unfriendly countries into rubles by March 31. When asked whether that means that mechanism will come into force on Thursday, Peskov said, “No, absolutely not. Payments and supplies are a process that takes a long time.”

“It doesn’t mean that this is it, tomorrow we deliver that gas, and it has to be paid for that evening.  This process is long,” he said.

Putin and French President Emmanuel Macron discussed Macron’s statement about the impossibility of paying for gas in rubles during their conversation on Tuesday, Peskov said.

He also said that proposals of parliament members to expand ruble payments to other exports like fertilizers, grain, oil, coal, metals, and timber should be worked out.

“This idea should be worked on definitely taking into account that the countries interested in mutual settlements in national currencies actually exist and taking into account that the prestige of the U.S. dollar as the main international reserve currency has been shaking for the past several years,” he said.

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