VTB Bank confirms Russia not in default
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When queried about the freezing of payments on Russian Eurobonds from frozen reserves, it was said that freezing the reserves of the Bank of Russia is illegal.
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(Reuters)
Russia is not in default and can repay its foreign debt, according to Andrey Kostin, CEO of Russia's second-largest bank VTB, during a press scrum in the State Duma, the lower house of parliament.
Kostin noted that "Russia is not in default, it is an absolutely solvent country, <...> the Russian Federation has every opportunity to pay."
When asked about the freezing of payments on Russian Eurobonds from frozen reserves, Kostin stated that freezing the reserves of the Bank of Russia is unlawful.
The head of the VTB detailed how the blocking of sovereign money is an "unheard-of-violation of all international norms, rules, laws."
He added that "Before that there were two such cases - Afghanistan, Iran. And now - Russia. It is absolutely unacceptable, and in these conditions, there is still no need to spend funds and foreign currency to pay, especially since these funds are available."
Last month, France froze $24 billion worth of assets belonging to the Russian Central Bank, in addition to freezing the accounts of private individuals.
"We have frozen the assets of the Central Bank of Russia in the amount of 22 billion euros. In addition, we have frozen assets in private individuals' accounts in French financial institutions in the amount of 150 million euros," Bruno Le Maire told RTL.
Since February 24, West-led sanctions have bombarded both the Russian financial and energy sectors.
Read more: EU officials plan to funnel funds from seized Russian assets to Ukraine
European officials have seized billions of euros in Russian property and assets in recent weeks, and if US and EU officials are to be believed, more is on the way.
Pressure campaign against Russia
The measures are part of an ongoing economic pressure campaign on Russian individuals, primarily by NATO-aligned nations. Official announcements portrayed the move as an initiative to "identify, constrain, freeze, seize, and, where appropriate, confiscate or forfeit" the assets of Russians suspected of having ties to the Russian government.
Only a day later, the EU declared a "Freeze and Seize" operation to collaborate with the US and coordinate Western cooperation. The so-called "task forces" are said to work alongside a previously disclosed US Justice Department-led program called "KleptoCapture," which aims to seize finances and assets from persons deemed "Putin affiliates" by Western governments.
