President of Russia Vladimir Putin said that Moscow will work on redirecting its energy exports eastwards as Europe strives to reduce its dependency on Russian energy. The politician added that the European countries will not be able to abandon Russian gas supplies immediately.
The European Union is currently considering an embargo on Russian gas and oil, and some of European countries are seeking supplies from elsewhere. At the same time, the Kremlin has been building closer ties with China, the world’s largest energy consumer, and other Asian countries.
Russia launched pipeline gas supplies to China in late 2019, and in February agreed a 30-year contract via a new pipeline.
Vladimir Putin also said that the role of national currencies in exports will increase due to Russia’s plans to switch to rubles in payments for its gas supplies.