Foreign
A senior White House official on Monday said Russia had defaulted on its sovereign debt for the first time in more than a century, indicating that the sanctions had a serious impact on the country.
However, experts said the default was likely to be mostly symbolic.
“Russia’s default for the first time in more than a century situates just how strong the actions are that the U.S. along with allies and partners have taken as well as how dramatic .
“The impact has been on Russia’s economy,” the official said on the sidelines of the summit in southern Germany.
The comments came after the expiry of a key deadline on interest payments of 100 million dollars a day earlier.
Russia has struggled to keep up payments on outstanding bonds as sweeping sanctions by a host of countries over its invasion of Ukraine have cut the country off from the global financial system.
Russia insists that it was capable of servicing its debts. Finance Minister Anton Siluanov previously described reports of an imminent default as a “farce,” saying that everyone who understands what was going on knows a default has not occurred.
Experts were initially cautious on the matter.
The default was likely to be largely symbolic, analysts at Dekabank said.
Russia is not heavily indebted.
The ratio of total debt to economic output is currently around 20 per cent, which is low by international standards.
In addition, only a small part of the national debt is in the hands of foreign creditors. (dpa/NAN)
– June 27, 2022 @ 13:46 GMT | C.E
Tags: RUSSIA
