Russia plans to demand ruble payments for natural gas purchases from European nations, deepening its standoff with the west and potentially aggravating Europe’s worst energy crunch since the 1970s. Gas prices surged more 30% after President Vladimir Putin ordered the central bank to develop a mechanism to make ruble payments for natural gas within a week at a meeting with his government. Putin’s move showed a growing willingness on both sides to use Russian energy supplies as a weapon in the struggle between Moscow and the west over the war in Ukraine. The specifics of the new arrangement weren’t immediately clear, but by demanding payments in rubles, Putin is essentially forcing European companies to directly prop […]