The Russian Foreign Minister said that the flight from the US dollar will “certainly accelerate” and stressed that “this trend is irreversible.” The official added, “The path of sanctions is a path that leads nowhere. Serious countries and sober politicians have come to relevant conclusions, and those conclusions are definitely in favor of ending dependence on the West.”
The trend toward de-dollarization is accelerating, Russian officials say
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a press conference Friday that the shift away from using the U.S. dollar as a medium of exchange in global trade in favor of national currencies is an irreversible trend, Russian media outlet Tass reported.
He also stressed the importance of working actively to neutralize the US and other security threats in cooperation with the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries. He further stated that in formulating its military, political, and diplomatic plans, Russia takes into account the attempts of Western countries to fuel conflicts near its borders. He continued:
The flight from the dollar has begun. So far, not all of it is swift, but it is certain to accelerate. In fact, this trend is irreversible.
“The United States has already, indeed, managed the global financial flows and the entire world economy by taking advantage of the dominant role of the dollar, cutting off the branches of the tree that were perched there,” claimed a top Russian diplomat.
“Despite threats from the United States and the European Union not to cooperate with the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus under pain of so-called secondary sanctions and other penalties, our partners, trade flows throughout the CIS are growing,” he stressed, with trade volume increasing by over 6% last year, exceeded $100 billion, he noted.
“The agreement on free trade in services between CIS countries, which is currently being prepared for signature, will give impetus to further expansion of economic exchange,” Lavrov added, concluding:
The road of sanctions is a road that leads nowhere. Serious countries (and) sober politicians have come to relevant conclusions, and those conclusions are definitely in favor of ending our dependence on the West.
On Friday, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov also told reporters that Russia is moving away from using U.S. dollars to pay for exports and is reducing settlements with contractors in U.S. dollars, TASS further reported.
“We are now focusing on settlements in our own currency, the ruble, and friendly currencies,” the official said, adding:
“Settlements in dollars are gradually decreasing, especially with the supply of Russian exports, with our contractors