Kremlin: Without ruble, no gas

Speaking of the American public broadcaster, PBS, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, said that while he does not know what will happen to those states that refuse to pay with rubles, “we will see what can be done”.

“Definitely, we will not do charity and send free gas to Western Europe”, he said.

This issue stems from Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision, which last week ordered the Russian Central Bank, Government and Energy Giant Gazprom ʹ controlled by the state to present proposals by 31 March regarding gas payments to non-friendly “states, including all states of the European Union.

Putin's decision is in response to severe Western sanctions due to the unprotested invasion of Ukraine by Moscow.

Meanwhile, the group of seven more industrialized states said it has agreed to reject the Kremlin's demand for the Russian energy fee, saying it represents violations of existing contracts.

Peskov also spoke of the possibility of using nuclear weapons in response to any existential threat to Russia, and said that “nobody is thinking of using nuclear weapons for the idea of using” in terms of the conflict in Ukraine.

He also said that the Russian Army is not attacking civilian targets in Ukraine, despite evidence from journalists, researchers and videos published on social networks showing the destruction of residential buildings, shopping centres, hospitals and other civilian targets.