Putin and Erdogan agreed to start paying for Russian gas supplies in rubles

On Friday, at the talks in Sochi, the presidents of Russia and Turkey reached an agreement  on paying for Russian gas supplies in rubles, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told reporters.

“The presidents agreed that we would begin partial gas supplies and pay for them in rubles,” Novak said. He recalled that at present Russia annually supplies about 26 billion cubic meters  (bcm) of gas to Turkey.

“We are gradually switching to payment in the national currency, part of the deliveries will already be paid in Russian rubles. This is really a new stage that opens up new opportunities, including for the development of our monetary and financial relations,” Novak emphasized. “Today, we essentially fulfilled the task set by the presidents of reaching a trade turnover of $ 100 billion and simplifying those procedures that allow our business to communicate,” Novak said.