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Russia's President Vladimir Putin
Photo: SERGEY GUNEEV / KREMLIN POOL / SPUTNIK / EPA
The German gas storage facilities are not as full as usual this winter, now the supplies could continue to dwindle.
Russia has once again stopped the supply of natural gas via the Russian-European Yamal-Europe pipeline.
The delivery quantities had already been significantly reduced in the three days before.
In the morning, gas was pumped in the opposite direction to Poland at the Mallnow (Brandenburg) compressor station - as it had on nine days at the beginning of November.
Moscow described the move as an economic decision, not a political one.
There is also no connection with the filling of the second strand of the controversial Baltic Sea pipeline Nord Stream 2, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov, according to the Interfax news agency.
The state-owned company Gazprom initially only said that gas would be supplied according to demand and the contracts concluded.
Details were initially not given.
Stopping gas supplies has the potential to further exacerbate tensions between Russia and the West.
The murder of a Georgian in the Kleiner Tiergarten recently caused particular upheaval between Berlin and Moscow.
Last Wednesday, the Berlin Superior Court convicted a 56-year-old Russian for the murder of the Georgian of Chechen origin - and considered it proven that the defendant was acting on behalf of the Russian state.
Germany had expelled two employees from the Russian embassy.
Russia responded by expelling two German diplomats and called in the German ambassador.
Putin phoned the new Chancellor Scholz for the first time
On Tuesday, according to Russian information, there was an exchange between Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin and Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz for the first time.
The Kremlin announced that Putin had signaled his willingness to enter into dialogue during the phone call.
The Kremlin announced that Putin had informed Scholz about the Russian proposals for binding security guarantees.
Russia had handed over a draft agreement to NATO, the US and its allies, including Germany, last week.
"The hope was expressed that serious negotiations would be organized on all the issues raised by the Russian side," said a statement from the Russian side.
There was no information on whether the two also talked about the murder of a Georgian in Berlin's Tiergarten.
The federal government did not initially provide any information on the phone call.
fek / dpa