French President Emmanuel MacronPARIS, Mar 25 French President Emmanuel Macron said that France there is no reason to agree with the Russian demand to pay in rubles for Russian gas, believes that the purpose of this requirement is to avoid sanctions. «The purpose of this requirement is to find a mechanism for circumventing sanctions. But this is incompatible with the contracts that we signed. Therefore, I see no reason to agree with this «, Macron said at a press conference following the EU summit on Friday. The French leader stressed that European buyers of Russian gas must purchase it for the euro, so it is impossible to fulfill this requirement. On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting with members of the Russian government said that Russia converts payments for gas supplies to unfriendly countries into rubles, it makes no sense to supply Russian goods to the EU and the USA and receive payment in their currency. Putin instructed the Central Bank and the Cabinet of Ministers to determine the procedure for transactions with Europe in rubles within a week. At the same time, Putin said that Russia would continue to supply gas in volumes and at prices fixed in earlier contracts, as the country values its reputation. >Italians came up with a way to support Putin in the gas situation
