Western countries, led by the United States, have imposed unprecedented economic sanctions on Russia for its aggression in Ukraine, but NATO ally Turkey has tried to remain neutral in the conflict as it is heavily dependent on Russian energy.

Russia accounted for about a quarter of Turkey’s oil imports and 45 percent of gas imports last year.

“In Turkey, our door is open to everyone,” Erdoğan said on Saturday on his way back from Sochi, where he met with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

“One good thing about the Sochi visit was that we agreed with Putin on the ruble issue,” he said. “Since we are going to conduct this trade in rubles, it will naturally bring income to both Turkey and Russia.”

Neither Erdogan nor Russian officials have confirmed how much gas imports will be paid for in rubles.

Reducing dollar payments will help Turkey conserve its dwindling foreign exchange reserves.

The Turkish government has reportedly spent tens of billions of dollars over the past year to prop up the lira, which has been depreciating due to the economic crisis.

The lira has lost 55 percent of its value against the dollar in the past 12 months, and consumer prices have risen 80 percent.

The United States and the European Union are trying to put pressure on Russian energy consumers to refuse the ruble payments demanded by Moscow.

Turkey has so far refused to join the international sanctions against Russia.

Moscow and Ankara want to increase their trade turnover to $100 billion (last year it was $33 billion). The countries also want to develop cooperation in the field of energy, trade, tourism and agriculture.

We are gradually switching to payment in the national currency, part of the supplies will already be paid in Russian rubles. This is really a new stage that opens up new opportunities, including for the development of our monetary and financial relations,” Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told reporters.

The presidents discussed the construction of the Turkish Akkuyu nuclear power plant, the timing of which worries Ankara, and the operation of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline, which, according to Putin, supplies Russian gas not only for the needs of Turkey, but also for consumers in Europe.

“I think European partners should be grateful to Turkey for ensuring the uninterrupted transit of our gas to the European market,” the Kremlin leader emphasized.

The leaders discussed the implementation of the Istanbul “grain agreements”, emphasizing the need for “unhindered exports of Russian grain and fertilizers.”

At the beginning of the meeting, it was stated that the parties would discuss security issues, primarily the Syrian crisis and support for Libya. In a joint statement released after the talks, there is no word on whether Putin discussed the war in Ukraine with Erdoğan.

Putin and Erdoğan did not discuss the issues of possible production in Russia or the purchase of Bayraktar drones from Turkey, Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the head of the Russian Federation, said after the talks were over.