Pavel Zavalny, chairman of the energy committee in the Russian parliament, said at a news conference on Thursday that Russia was willing to accept Bitcoin for its natural resource exports. Zavalny explained that Russia is willing to accept payment in different currencies, starting with gas, depending on the buyer's preferred method of payment. However, the chairman said the terms would depend on the state of the importing country's diplomatic relations with Russia, which could trade with "friendly" countries in its own currency or bitcoin.