Russian gas is still being sold in significant volumes to Slovakia and Hungary, as well as to the Czech Republic which does not have a direct contract. Smaller volumes are going to Italy and Serbia.

What many aren’t aware of is that Russia remains one of the continent’s most important energy suppliers, and the European Union’s goal to end its dependence on Russian fossil fuels by 2027 will be hard to achieve.

"We can live through any price," Novak told Al Arabiya News in an interview published on Monday.

The Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act was signed by President Joe Biden in May, after being passed unanimously by the US Senate and will go into effect on 11 August.

The agenda includes a logistics supply agreement to bolster cooperation between the two militaries, restarting discussions on the joint development of a fifth generation fighter aircraft, and collaboration on nuclear power, the people said.

Russia was able to divert oil exports away from Europe to India and China, securing the much-needed financial flows for its budget, which is in deficit as Moscow spends heavily on defence and security.

Huge investments made over the past decades in the development of alternative energy sources have not led to the displacement of fossil fuels from the energy market, and the green transition strategy in its current form cannot ensure the sufficiency, availability and reliability of energy sources.

With piped gas supplies cut off after the war, imports of LNG from Moscow increased to around 18 billion cubic meters in 2023 from less than 14 billion cubic meters before the attack, according to EU data.

The country exported a total of 7.3 million barrels a day last month, down 6.4% from March, the Paris-based agency said in its monthly report published Wednesday. That’s Russia’s lowest oil exports in five months, the IEA estimates show.

The legislation is designed to reduce US reliance on Russian uranium for nuclear fuel following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Novak is taking on additional responsibility for economic development and anti-sanctions measures after former economic development minister Andrey Belousov was named new defense minister in a dramatic change of guard during the third year of full-scale war in Ukraine.

Total Russian seaborne crude exports reached 3.9 million-4 million b/d in March and April, boosted by multi-month high shipments to India, and around the highest since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

Proceeds for the Russian budget from oil-related taxes jumped to 1.053 trillion rubles ($11.5 billion) last month compared to nearly 497 billion rubles in April 2023, according to Bloomberg calculations based on Finance Ministry data. Total oil and gas revenues in April increased nearly 90% year-on-year, to 1.23 trillion rubles, according to the data.

This problem isn’t entirely new — Russia has faced a shrinking working-age population for almost two decades.

Russia observed “sustained positive dynamics” in the flow of money to the federal budget, according to a Finance Ministry statement on Monday. Revenues for the three months through March amounted to 8.7 trillion rubles ($94 billion), an increase of 53.5% compared with the same period last year, data from the ministry showed.