AFP, Riga

The head of Latvia’s natural gas storage operator said Saturday the Baltic states were no longer importing Russian natural gas.

“If there were still any doubts about whether there may be any trust in deliveries from Russia, current events clearly show us that there is no more trust,” said Uldis Bariss, CEO of Conexus Baltic Grid. “Since April 1st Russian natural gas is no longer flowing to Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania,” he told Latvian radio.

He added that the Baltic market was currently being served by gas reserves stored underground in Latvia. The move comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin has sought to leverage Russia’s status as an energy power.

With his economy crippled by unprecedented international sanctions, Putin warned EU members that they would need to set up rouble accounts to pay for Russian gas.