Japan Unsure How Russia Will Execute Rouble Payments for Energy Sold to ‘Unfriendly’ Nations

Japan's Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki prepares to ring a bell during the New Year ceremony marking the opening of trading in 2022 at the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Tokyo, Japan, on Jan. 4, 2022. Issei Kato/Reuters

TOKYO—Japan does not know how Russia will handle the required rouble payments for its energy sold to “unfriendly” countries, the finance minister said on Thursday.

Japan accounted for 4.1 percent of Russia’s crude oil exports and 7.2 percent of its natural gas exports in 2021.