Russian energy corporation Gazprom cuts off gas to Latvia

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s state-owned natural gas corporation says it has halted shipments to Latvia because of contract violations. In a brief statement, gas giant Gazprom said the shipments were stopped because Latvia broke “terms for extraction of gas.” It didn’t elaborate.The statement likely referred to a refusal to meet Russia’s demand for gas payments in rubles rather than other currencies. Gazprom previously suspended shipments to European Union countries, including the Netherlands, Poland and Bulgaria, because they would not pay in rubles.The immediate effects of the cutoff were not clear. Latvian media reported this week that the country had resumed buying Russian gas from another supplier.