JRL NEWSWATCH: “Zelensky wines, dines with the world’s richest in the hopes of rebuilding war-torn Ukraine” – New York Post

File Photo of Assorted U.S. Cash, adapted from image at tsa.gov

“… Zelensky’s most important speech while in New York … was not at the UN, but in a private room a few blocks away. ‘Investing in Ukraine has to be good for you and good for us. I understand capitalism,’ [Zelensky said, to] what was described … as a ‘star-struck’ group of billionaire financiers, plus Henry Kissinger, New England Patriots […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian Agricultural Bank could have SWIFT access within 30 days, UN tells Moscow” – Reuters

Wheat in Field, adapted from image at usda.gov

“A Russian Agricultural Bank subsidiary in Luxembourg could immediately apply to SWIFT to ‘effectively enable access’ for the bank to the international payments system within 30 days, the United Nations told Russia in a letter …. ‘SWIFT has confirmed that RSHB Capital S.A. would be eligible to apply for membership and access to SWIFT for food and fertilizer transactions, based […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin, Xi and BRICS Allies See Chance to Shake Up World Order” – Bloomberg

File Photo of Beijing Temple, adapted from image at lbl.gov

“Dozens of nations have lined up to become members of BRICS.” “… The BRICS bloc — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — will use an annual leaders’ summit in Johannesburg … to begin the process of enlisting more members to bolster its global heft, a push driven mainly by Chinese President Xi Jinping but also backed by Russia […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia’s War-Torn Economy Hits Its Speed Limit” – WSJ

Cash, Calculator, Pen

“Economists see this week’s currency gyrations not as the beginning of a financial crisis but rather as a symptom of the Kremlin’s sclerotic economic prospects.” “The Russian central bank’s jumbo interest-rate increase to halt a tumbling ruble … points to a new reality …. The government has flooded the Russian economy with money to keep … troops in Ukraine supplied […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Drastic Economic Moves Highlight Russia’s Wartime Bind” – New York Times

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

“With the third-largest interest rate increase in a decade to shore up the ruble, Moscow’s policymakers are pursuing the conflicting goals of paying for the war against Ukraine and taming inflation.” “For years, Russia’s central bank … shielded the country’s economy when crisis … loomed, drastically raising interest rates, restricting money movements or taking over ailing banks. … convey[ing] a […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Putin Opts Against Stricter Capital Controls Amid Ruble’s Slide – Vedomosti” – Moscow Times

File photo of Russian paper currency, adapted from image at csce.house.gov

(Moscow Times – Aug. 17, 2023) Russia will not tighten capital controls in response to a weakening ruble, the Vedomosti business daily reported Thursday, citing two anonymous sources close to the Russian government. President Vladimir Putin met with cabinet members and Central Bank governor Elvira Nabiullina on Wednesday to hear proposals on converting foreign currency earnings held by exporters into […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia will struggle to cope with a sinking rouble” – The Economist

File photo of Russian paper currency, adapted from image at csce.house.gov

“What does the currency’s collapse mean for Vladimir Putin’s ability to wage war?” On Aug. 14, 2023, the value of the ruble fell below 1 cent in U.S. currency, more than 100 rubles per U.S. dollar.  That was the ruble’s worst exchange value against the U.S. dollar since the immediate aftermath of the early 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. “… […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian central bank looks to spread risks across banking sector – Expert magazine” – Reuters

Cash, Calculator, Pen

“As Russian banks contend with foreign currency and payment headaches, the central bank [reportedly] is determined to redistribute funding and risks across the sector to safeguard those lenders [targeted by Western sanctions] …. The West imposed unprecedented measures against Russia’s banking sector after … [the] Feb. 24 [invasion of Ukraine], blocking major banks from … SWIFT … and limiting their […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russia Hikes Rates as Economists Warn of Triple Threat to Economy” – Moscow Times

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

The Russian economy faces a surge in coronavirus cases, partial lockdowns and spiraling inflation […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Cuts Dollar Holdings From $119 Billion Wealth Fund Amid Sanctions” – Bloomberg

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

“Russia said it will eliminate the dollar from its oil fund [the National Wellbeing Fund] to reduce vulnerability to Western sanctions …. The wealth fund currently holds 35% of its liquid assets in dollars, … about $41.5 billion, with the same amount in euros and the rest spread across yuan, gold, yen and pounds. After the change, the fund’s assets […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Raises Rates Amid Standoff With West, Signs of Covid-19 Economic Recovery; Central bank increases its main interest rate by 50 basis points to 5%” – Wall Street Journal

Cash, Calculator, Pen

“… The Bank of Russia raised its main rate to 5% from 4.5% …. [saying] it expected inflation to be higher than previously anticipated, citing a rebound in demand as Russia’s Covid-19 vaccination program progressed. … The central bank signaled concern about other developments …. follow[ing] [U.S. sanctions] bar[ring] U.S. banks and institutional investors from buying new Russian government ruble-denominated […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Should Russian Banks Be Scared of SWIFT Disconnection?” – Moscow Times

File Image of Artist's Conception of Globe with Curved Connecting Lines of Light Passing Through Space, adapted from image at fincen.gov

Talk of financial Armageddon should Russia be kicked out of the system may be overblown. (Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Jake Cordell – April 22, 2021) Jake covers business & economics for The Moscow Times. Ukraine has joined the chorus of voices calling for Russia to be disconnected from SWIFT — the financial messaging network that underpins the global banking […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Central Bank sees no risks in disconnecting Russia from international payment systems; it would be very unfavorable for them – CBR first deputy governor” – Interfax

File Image of Artist's Conception of Globe with Curved Connecting Lines of Light Passing Through Space, adapted from image at fincen.gov

MOSCOW. April 14 (Interfax) – The Central Bank of Russia (CBR) does not see any risks in disconnecting Russia from the international payment systems, as this would be unfavorable for them, CBR first deputy governor Olga Skorobogatova said during a briefing on Wednesday. “If we are talking about the current situation, then I believe that it is rather calm and […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russian Ruble Hits 10-Week High on Investor Optimism; The Finance Ministry sold a record volume of government bonds Wednesday, and the government is reportedly mulling increasing foreign currency sales.” – Moscow Times

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – May 21, 2020) The ruble has hit its strongest level in more than two months, pushed higher by investor confidence, renewed appetite for risk and a partial recovery in worldwide oil prices. The ruble was trading at 70.8 against the U.S. dollar Thursday morning – a 12% appreciation since panic on the financial markets in […]

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RUSSIALINK: “CBR reiterates, strengthens monetary policy signal: scale of shock requires broad steps, economy to require low-cost funds” – Interfax

Central Bank of Russia file photo

MOSCOW. April 28 (Interfax) – The Central Bank of Russia (CBR), which cut its key rate by 50 basis points last Friday for the first time in six months and said that further monetary easing was possible at its next meeting, has reiterated its dovish signal and even strengthened it somewhat. “We must be able to mitigate the blow to […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Cuts Interest Rate to Shore Up Faltering Economy” – Wall Street Journal/ Georgi Kantchev

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

The central bank takes action as the country lurches towards a recession. “Russia’s central bank cut its benchmark interest rate in a move to shore up the country’s economy as it lurches toward a deep recession due to depressed oil prices and shutdowns over the spread of the coronavirus. … lower[ing] its key rate by a deeper-than-usual 50 basis points […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “EBRD drops a COVID-19 dambuster on Russian sanctions; The EBRD has started investing in Russia again after several years off” – bne Intellinews/ Jason Corcoran

Cash, Calculator, Pen

“A modest investment by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in a Russian travel company may prove to be the sanctions dambuster that the Kremlin has been longing for. The London-headquartered bank announced on April 7 it would provide finance to a Russian travel aggregator Travelata as part of its €1bn coronavirus (COVID-19) funding programme … designed to […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russian Banks More Stable and Transparent Than Ever, Central Bank Chief Says; Six years and $80 billion into a mammoth clean-up drive, Elvira Nabiullina hails the strength of Russia’s financial sector” – Moscow Times

Central Bank of Russia file photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Jake Cordell – November 8, 2019) The Russian financial sector is “more stable and more transparent than ever before,” according to the governor of Russia’s Central Bank Elvira Nabiullina. The country’s banks are finally becoming an attractive option for investors, and the sector is now a “partner for real companies and the real economy,” Nabiullina […]

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RUSSIALINK: “What’s Next for Russia’s Economy? Analysts predict low growth, low inflation and a strong stock market in the final two months of the year” – Moscow Times

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Jake Cordell – November 1, 2019) Jake Cordell covers business & economics for The Moscow Times. A fresh roster of forecasts and data on the Russian economy suggests slow growth and low inflation coupled with robust corporate performance will mark the final two months of the year. Meanwhile, economy-watchers remain fixed on a crucial Central […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russia Has Lost $1 Trillion in Capital Flight Since Fall of U.S.S.R., Says Putin’s Economist. Top politician blames International Monetary Fund for promoting massive capital outflow” – Moscow Times

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 25, 2019) Around $1 trillion of capital has been pulled out of Russia since the fall of the U.S.S.R., a close aide to President Vladimir Putin has told world leaders at the Russia-Africa forum in Sochi. Sergei Glazyev, who was a long-time economic adviser to Putin and is now minister in charge of integration […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Guns, Butter, and Russia’s Enduring Power” – Kennan Institute/ Maxim Trudolyubov

Cash, Calculator, Pen

(Kennan Institute – wilsoncenter.org/program/kennan-institute – Maxim Trudolyubov – September 20, 2019) Maxim Trudolyubov is a Senior Fellow at the Kennan Institute and the Editor-at-Large of Vedomosti, an independent Russian daily. Mr. Trudolyubov was the editorial page editor of Vedomosti between 2003 and 2015. In response to sanctions and attempts to isolate Russia, the Kremlin has built up a budget with […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin’s Iconoclastic Economics Guru to Lose Kremlin Post [re: Sergei Glazyev]” – Bloomberg/ Evgenia Pismennaya and Stepan Kravchenko

Kremlin and River

“A[ Kremlin] economist [and top Putin advisor] known for challenging Russia’s tight-money policies … is leaving the Kremlin after seven years. Sergei Glazyev will switch to the Eurasian Economic Commission that oversees relations between … Eurasian Economic Union [member states] … Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan … Glazyev alarmed investors … with calls for massive state spending, abandoning the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Relentless rise of consumer debt in Russia fuels bubble fears for some” – Reuters/ Darya Korsunskaya, Elena Fabrichnaya, Tatiana Voronova

Hands Opening Envelope Containing Cash

“… After five years of shrinking real incomes, many Russians are borrowing to make ends meet or even just to pay off their creditors – and the issue is climbing up the political agenda. … Some 2.5 million people earning up to 20,000 roubles ($303.09) a month … less than half the average wage, spend more than half of that […]

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Impact of Sanctions on Russia’s GDP Less Severe Than Low Oil Prices – IMF

Oil Well file photo

The fall in oil prices cost the country on average $48.75 billion in lost economic growth per year. (Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – August 6, 2019) Sanctions have had a less severe impact on Russia’s GDP growth than low oil prices, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in its latest report on the country. Between 2014 and 2018, sanctions slowed […]

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For Russian Economy, August Not April is the Cruelest Month

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, August 3, 2019) August has begun with yet another decline in the value of the ruble, continuing the trend this summer month set in 1998 with default and continued last year with a decline of eight percent in the ruble’s exchange rate against Western currencies. And the rest of this month this […]

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Russians Living on Loans Face Credit Crunch This Fall, Financial Analyst Says

Cash, Calculator, Pen

(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, July 28, 2019) The economic situation of the large number of Russians who have sought to maintain their earlier standard of living by taking out loans is about to get much worse, financial analyst Igor Nikolayev says, because in the coming months, the government plans to make it more difficult for them […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia and China; Partnership is much better for China than it is for Russia; Just how much better might not become clear for a few years yet” – The Economist

Asia Map

“[Compared to Russia,] … China[‘s] economy is six times larger (at purchasing-power parity) … its power is growing … as Russia’s fades. … Russia is evolving into a Chinese tributary. … Russia is still a nuclear-weapons state with a permanent seat on the [UNSC]…. It has modernised its armed forces and, as in Syria, is not afraid to use them. […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Cuts Interest Rate Again Amid Global Push for Looser Policy” – Wall Street Journal/ Georgi Kantchev

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

“Russia’s central bank lowers its main rate to 7.25%” “… With signs mounting that the world economy is slowing, the [Federal Reserve] is widely expected to lower interest rates for the first time in over a decade …. The European Central Bank signaled … it is preparing to cut short-term interest rates for the first time since early 2016 …. […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “The evictors For the past five years, loan sharks have forced more than 500 Muscovites from their homes. Here’s how the industry works.” – Meduza

Hand Pulling Cash from Envelope

“In Moscow and [environs] … ‘black creditors’ – microfinance institutions (MFOs) … deceive [debtors] and seize … homes. Meduza … [found ] almost 500 apartments lost … over the past five years without so much as a court order. … more than simply ‘squeezing’ people from their homes … possibly part of a wider, international money-laundering system. * * * […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian Stocks Seen Rising 25% by Mid-2020” – Reuters

File Photo of Outdoor Electronic Sign with Russian Exchange Data

“… [impacted by] the price of oil, Russia’s key export, and fading fears of more Western sanctions …. Russian stock indexes achieved their biggest gains year-to-date in mid-July. The dollar-based RTS had risen nearly 33% back then and its rouble-based peer MOEX was up 21%. Russia’s largest gas producer Gazprom gained nearly 68% year-to-date earlier in July, while the country’s […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Review: The Struggle of Russia’s crony capitalists” [re: Anders Aslund new book]” – Reuters/ Dasha Afanasieva

File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

“… Anders Aslund … in ‘Russia’s Crony Capitalism: The Path from Market Economy to Kleptocracy‘ … [casts Putin] as a patriarchal overlord … handsomely reward[ing] those loyal …. creat[ing] a new elite of friends, former co-workers and relatives. What’s less clear is what, if anything [can be done about it]. … [A]naly[zing] the last 15 or so years of Putin’s […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Visa and Mastercard May Soon Exit Russia Under Draft Law – Reports” – Moscow Times

File Photo of Stack of Credit Cards, adapted from image at fdic.gov

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – July 12, 2019) New Russian payment system laws could lead the world’s largest credit and debit card companies Visa and Mastercard to exit the country’s market, the Kommersant business daily reported on Friday. U.S.-based Visa and Mastercard stopped servicing bank cards in annexed Crimea after the United States imposed sanctions on Russia in 2014. Russia […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Michael Calvey Case Revisited: A Corporate Hit, a Bargaining Chip” – Kennan Institute/ Pavel Koshkin

Cash, Calculator, Pen

(Kennan Institute – wilsoncenter.org/program/kennan-institute – Pavel Koshkin – wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/michael-calvey-case-revisited-corporate-hit-bargaining-chip) Pavel Koshkin is a research fellow of the Institute of U.S. and Canadian Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences (ISKRAN) and a contributor to Forbes Russia The American investor Michael Calvey, who was detained in February in Moscow on fraud charges, is back in the news again. Calvey, who has […]

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Russia’s National Projects: Economic Reboot or Mucky Bog?

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – Ben Aris – May 30, 2019) Ben Aris is editor in chief of bne Intellinews. He has been covering Russia as a journalist since 1993. While Moscow has been aggressively advancing its interests on the international stage, Russia’s stagnating economy means the country risks gradually falling behind the rest of the world and possibly facing […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Banking on Politics: How Russia’s Banking Sector Clean-Up Affects Regime Stability” – PONARS Eurasia/ David Szakonyi

Elvira Nabiullina file photo

“Banking has increasingly become nationalized in Russia, raising concerns that all private banks may be forced from the market within 10 or 15 years. In the short run, this consolidation enables the government to continue funding its numerous and expensive commitments and thereby maintain social and political stability. David Szakonyi discusses the political consequences of this creeping nationalization of the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH “Russia ramps up bond sales ahead of possible U.S. sanctions; Moscow’s $1.1bn issuance comes after April fundraising smashed records” – Financial Times/ Max Seddon, Nikou Asgari

File Photo of Facade of Russian Finance Ministry

“… [Russia’s] finance ministry sold Rbs73bn ($1.1bn) in rouble-denominated bonds … Wednesday[,] … part of a plan to raise Rbs600bn in domestic debt this quarter. … [after] a record Rbs400bn in April – four times [Russia’s] monthly average – feeding strong investor appetite for high-yielding emerging market debt. … [Analysts regard the efforts] as a pre-emptive stockpiling … [against] the […]

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Have Sanctions on Russia Changed Putin’s Calculus?

Portion of U.S. Treasury Department Building Facade, North Side, with Sculpture of Alexander Hamilton

Since Russia’s 2014 invasion of Ukraine, Western powers have hit Moscow with economic sanctions, hoping to put a stop to President Vladimir Putin’s aggression. Have they worked? (Council on Foreign Relations – Andrew Chatzky – May 2, 2019 – cfr.org/article/have-sanctions-russia-changed-putins-calculus – Andrew Chatzky covers economics, energy, and geopolitics, and helps edit the Daily News Brief.) The United States and the […]

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Interview: Russia Seeks To ‘Capitalize On Opportunities’ In Libya

File Photo of Ancient Roman Arch in Libya Framing Minaret and Palm Trees, adapted from image at cia.gov

(Article text ©2019 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – Tony Wesolowsky – April 10, 2019 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/interview-russia-seeks-to-capitalize-on-opportunities-in-libya/29873341.html) The situation is escalating in Libya, where more than 30 people have been killed since fighting broke out on April 4, when forces loyal to Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar launched an offensive against the internationally […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Sanctions against Russian state banks likely to be more of a deterrent measure- Kudrin” – Interfax

Alexei Kudrin file photo

WASHINGTON. April 14 (Interfax) – If the currently discussed U.S. legislation on new anti-Russian sanctions is enacted, its implementation is going to be either delayed or unlikely to affect those banks whose problems could actually change the general economic situation in Russia, Accounts Chamber head Alexei Kudrin said. “I suppose that the framework provisions are going to be adopted, but […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “All About the U.S. Sanctions Aimed at Putin’s Russia” – Bloomberg/ Henry Meyer, Laurence Arnold, Olga Tanas, Tony Halpin

Portion of U.S. Treasury Department Building Facade, North Side, with Sculpture of Alexander Hamilton

“… Since 2014, the U.S. has imposed travel bans, asset freezes and finance and trade restrictions against hundreds of Russian individuals and companies … a multinational effort …. 1. What U.S. sanctions are in place against Russia? More than 700 Russian people and companies have been targeted …. 2. Why were the sanctions imposed? … starting in 2014 after Russia […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia’s New Gold Rush Could Shake Up the International Monetary System; Russia and China might be considering a gold-backed digital currency.” – Moscow Times/ Bruno Macaes

File Photo of Gold Bars with U.S. Government Engravings, adapted from image at fbi.govA

“Russia is buying … [a] lot of gold … quadrupl[ing] reserves [within a decade]. Gold buying last year exceeded mine supply for the first time … Russia is about to become a net importer …. Are the Russian authorities preparing for a renewed clash with the United States … attempting to reduce … vulnerability to … sanctions? Or do they […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia backs global use of its alternative SWIFT system” – Reuters

File Image of Artist's Conception of Globe with Curved Connecting Lines of Light Passing Through Space, adapted from image at fincen.gov

“Russian lawmakers on Tuesday backed the international use of a Russian alternative system for the global financial messaging network SWIFT designed by Moscow to eliminate the risk of Western sanctions. Russia has held talks with China, India, Iran and Turkey about joint use of Russia’s financial messaging system …. Russia started developing an alternative to the Belgium-based SWIFT financial messaging […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “‘Chaotic’ sanctions against Russia have failed, says Navalny’ Putin critic claims they miss target and US and UK avoid tackling dirty money” – Financial Times/ Max Seddon

Portion of U.S. Treasury Department Building Facade, North Side, with Sculpture of Alexander Hamilton

“… Navalny said western sanctions against Moscow missed the target and were not working, and that the U.S. and UK had no real interest in tackling ‘dirty money.’ … Navalny labelled existing economic curbs ‘chaotic’ and ‘incomprehensible’ and said attempts to rein in Russia should refocus to target properly the powerful oligarchs with close links to … Putin. … argu[ing] […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia sanctions: Myths and lessons” – The Hill/ Nigel Gould-Davies

Portion of U.S. Treasury Department Building Facade, North Side, with Sculpture of Alexander Hamilton

“… First, sanctions now directly target economic elites and major private assets, not only state officials and companies. Second, the United States is deploying some of the most potent weapons in its sanctions arsenal … hitherto used against terrorist groups, transnational crime and ‘rogue states.’ Third, sanctions have become an accepted, not exceptional, instrument for dealing with Russia. … 1. … […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia faces sharp outflow of private investment; More than $67bn shifted out of the country’s economy last year” – Financial Times/ Henry Foy

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

“More private money left Russia in 2018 than … since the Crimean crisis and oil market rout of 2014 …. Over $67bn … according to the … central bank …. some … attributed to fears over … U.S. sanctions and threats of more actions from Washington …. [ING’s] Dmitry Dolgin … [indicated that when] Russia’s central bank suspended foreign exchange […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin Push to Dump Dollar Proves Hard Sell With Russia Inc.” – Bloomberg/ Natasha Doff, Evgenia Pismennaya, Anna Andrianova, Annmarie Hordern, Andrey Biryukov, Anna Baraulina, Ilya Arkhipov, Yuliya Fedorinova

File Photo of Assorted U.S. Cash, adapted from image at tsa.gov

“Russia’s central bank dumped $101 billion last year in its biggest-ever shift away from the U.S. currency amid fears of new sanctions. But the Kremlin’s drive to wean the rest of the economy off the greenback has been slower going. Despite … Putin’s regular public exhortations to accelerate ‘de-dollarization,’ even the country’s state-owned companies are sticking to the currency. Shifting […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin can’t afford to ditch the dollar” – Reuters/ Steven E. Halliwell

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

“Paul Manafort, while managing Donald Trump’s 2016 election campaign, is accused of passing private polling data to his Russia business partner, a man with alleged ties to Russian intelligence. … revealed in an unsealed court filing … likely to stoke the case in Congress for increased sanctions …. [T]he reverberations will be felt in Moscow, where anger and frustration over […]

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RUSSIALINK: “To Be Effective, Russia Sanctions Have to Be Removable; The U.S. must decide whether its economic restrictions against Oleg Deripaska are a permanent punishment or an incentive for change” – Bloomberg / Leonid Bershidsky

U.S. Capitol in Bright Sunlight

“The congressional Democrats’ opposition to a proposal to lift U.S. sanctions against the companies founded by the Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska raises an important question: Is the punitive policy designed to achieve specific goals or primarily to make a statement? The sanctions against United Co. Rusal, En+ Group Plc and EuroSibEnergo JSC will expire on Jan. 19 unless Congress takes […]

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