Moscow sees no reason to reduce the share of the euro in national reserves and external settlements, although it does not rule out the application of such mechanisms to this currency. At the same time, Russia has no doubts about the advisability of continuing the course to reduce the share of the dollar, said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin. The deputy minister added that Russia and the European Union are discussing the possibility of increasing the share of the euro in payments for energy resources.
“There is no doubt about the expediency of continuing to work on further reducing the share of the dollar in national international reserves, as well as its use in settlements with foreign partners. At the same time, it is possible to replace the US dollar with other currencies, both national and regional, and in the future, probably, with some kind of digital assets, “Mr. Pankin said in an interview with Interfax.
Alexander Pankin added that with regard to the euro, Russia does not face “problems in settlements and transfers, therefore we see no reason to apply similar tactics either to the European single currency or to any other national currencies.”
In his opinion, it is economically inexpedient to replace this currency “with any other exclusively for political reasons.” The euro, according to Mr. Pankin, “provides acceptable reliability and cost level in the implementation of settlement transactions.”
“As part of the discussion on increasing the international role of the euro and the possibility of using it to pay for energy supplies, we are conducting such a dialogue with the EU and are ready to increase the share of the euro in relevant operations by reducing the dollar component,” he added.
On July 5, the Russian Ministry of Finance excluded the dollar from the National Wealth Fund (NWF). The changes were carried out in accordance with the government decree of May 21. In an official statement, the Ministry of Finance explained that they are aimed “at ensuring the safety of NWF funds in the context of macroeconomic and geopolitical trends of recent years and decisions aimed at” de-dollarization “of the Russian economy.”
Read more in the publication of Kommersant, “The Ministry of Finance exchanged dollars for gold.”
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