Russia simplifies gas payments in rubles
To simplify payment for gas in rublesRussia amends tax laws for foreign companies.
Russia amends tax law
Tax law of Russia was revised to make it easier for foreign companies to open accounts in Russian banks and to register with the country’s tax authorities, RT reported.
On May 1, President Vladimir Putin signed a bill into law amending Russia’s tax code and published it on the official portal of legal information.
The law is intended to help foreign companies pay for Russian gas in rubles, in line with a new mechanism adopted last month. Foreign legal entities will be able to register with the Russian tax authorities after the bank that opened the account for them submits an application.
“This makes registration and opening an account really easy,” business daily Vedomosti quoted lawmaker and tax commission member Olga Anufrieva as saying. The measure is only temporary, she added.
In March, Moscow demanded that “unfriendly countries” (those that have imposed economic sanctions on Russia) pay for gas in cash. ruble. The European Union (EU) refused, saying that doing so would violate sanctions related to Ukraine and the terms of the existing contract.
However, according to media reports, 10 member states have agreed to use the new payment mechanism, and 4 have made the first payments in Russian currency. The Hungarian government on May 1 confirmed it had opened a euro account with Russia’s Gazprombank.
Hungary does not support Russia’s oil and gas embargo
Hungary at the same time reaffirms its position not to support the embargo Russian oil and gas. Hungary denied a report in the German media that claimed it was prepared to support an EU ban on Russian oil and gas in response to Moscow’s military campaign in Ukraine.
Budapest confirmed its stance on the issue after German broadcaster ZDF quoted sources as saying that “hesitant” countries such as Austria, Hungary and Slovakia had “withdrawn their veto”.
The Hungarian government’s spokesman for international affairs, Zoltan Kovacs, tweeted on May 2: “No, dear editors at ZDF, Hungary does not waive its veto. In fact, Hungary’s position on oil and gas sanctions from Russia has remained unchanged: We do not support it.
Hungary, which relies heavily on Russian energy imports, has warned that supply cuts from Moscow will hurt its economy.
“We must not apply those sanctions, because the sanctions that we impose make us punish ourselves,” Gergely Gulyas, head of the Hungarian Prime Minister’s Office told Kossuth radio. May 1st. Budapest is experiencing higher-than-expected inflation, he explained, and is interested in continuing to get “energy at the cheapest possible price”.
In a separate interview with HirTV, Mr. Gulyas affirmed that Hungary will never support an embargo on Russian oil and gas.
In March, the EU announced a plan to phase out Russia’s fossil fuels by 2030, not ban it immediately, despite calls from Kiev.
On May 2, Reuters quoted EU officials as saying that Brussels could exempt Hungary and Slovakia from embargoes on Russian oil. The latest sanctions package is expected to be finalized on May 2.
After the West froze Russian state assets in response to the military campaign in Ukraine, Russia asked EU members to switch to paying for Russian gas in rubles. Russia has cut off gas for Poland and Bulgaria last week because the two countries refused to pay in Russian currency.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the move “unreasonable and unacceptable.” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov argued on May 2 that the need to pay for gas in rubles was justified. because the West has “stolen” Russian assets, “most of which is obtained through the supply of gas and oil”.
Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine at the end of February, after accusing Kiev of failing to fulfill the terms of the Minsk agreement, first signed in 2014 and eventually Moscow’s recognition of the the self-proclaimed Donbass republics Donetsk and Lugansk. The Minsk agreement brokered by Germany and France was designed to give the breakaway regions special status in Ukraine.
The Kremlin has since requested Ukraine officially declared a neutral country and will never join the US-led NATO military bloc. Kiev insists that the Russian attack is completely unprovoked and denies that it is planning to retake the two republics in the Donbass by force.
at Blogtuan.info – Source: laodong.vn – Read the original article here