Shutting out Russia from SWIFT would not be a surgical strike
“Swift’s full title is The Society for Worldwide Interbank Telecommunication. That highlights the satisfying ostracism involved in expelling Russia. But it also hints at flaws in the tactic.”
ft.com/content/e2e174…
“Swift’s full title is The Society for Worldwide Interbank Telecommunication. That highlights the satisfying ostracism involved in expelling Russia. But it also hints at flaws in the tactic.”
ft.com/content/e2e174…
“Firstly, Swift is not a full-blooded payments network. Nor is Swift, as sometimes claimed, a mere messaging system. True, its core utility resides in around 42m encrypted instructions that 11,500 users in 200 countries exchange daily to co-ordinate payments.”
“But these messages embody something grander: mutual trust based on common standards.
Expelling Russia from Swift would not isolate Russia financially, as proponents imply. Nor would it be as futile as opponents imagine.”
Expelling Russia from Swift would not isolate Russia financially, as proponents imply. Nor would it be as futile as opponents imagine.”
“The sanction would have “a chilling effect”, in the words of Harley Balzer, emeritus professor at Georgetown University in the US, discouraging some western banks from Russian dealings. Others would continue to send and receive payments with Russian counterparties.”
“Russia’s own payments messaging system remains largely domestic. Cross-border dealings would probably involve emails, or anachronistic telexes or faxes. Russian business people say this would be fiddly, slow and insecure, but would work much of the time.”
SWIFT is EU based.
SWIFT is EU based.
To what extent will Germany be willing to disrupt Russian payments given its ties to Nord Stream 2?
https://twitter.com/fascinatorfun/status/1492777590385430531
There’s plenty that the US can do unilaterally given it has already put in place “low intensity” sanctions on 5 Russian banks including Sperbank and VTB.
They have aggregate assets of $US800 billion.
Half of Russia’s foreign exchange is currently carried out in US$.
They have aggregate assets of $US800 billion.
Half of Russia’s foreign exchange is currently carried out in US$.
“Because so many cross-border transactions have a dollar leg, unilateral US sanctions would achieve 75 per cent of combined US-European sanctions,” reckons Brian O’Toole, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, a Washington think-tank.”
“If any sanction is analogous with a nuclear option, it would be cutting off Russian transactions in the almighty dollar via institutions with US links. That would cause serious economic damage, despite Russia’s gold and foreign exchange reserves of $630bn.”
Then there is all the Putin money held by his Oligarchs scattered around the world. Including in the U.K.
How many donors to the Tory Party?
How many donors to the Tory Party?
Looks as if Germany is rowing back from Nord Stream 2.
https://twitter.com/philipoltermann/status/1496078379426136064
Welcome news. It looks as if Germany is rowing back on reliance on Nord Stream 2 which, I suspect, Russia was hoping would keep Germany in line.
“The situation has fundamentally changed”, says the German Chancellor.
“The situation has fundamentally changed”, says the German Chancellor.
https://twitter.com/philipoltermann/status/1496078379426136064
And the first tranche of U.K. sanctions.
Not seeing any Russian Oligarchs who are Tory donors on the list.
Not yet clear about the force of these sanctions.
Not seeing any Russian Oligarchs who are Tory donors on the list.
Not yet clear about the force of these sanctions.
https://twitter.com/fascinatorfun/status/1496112928533233670
It look as if @LaylaMoran is not at all impressed.
“Weak, weak, weak”
“Weak, weak, weak”
https://twitter.com/laylamoran/status/1496106541241573377
And nor is @Billbrowder “Pretty tepid…where is Sperbank and VTB?”
https://twitter.com/Billbrowder/status/1496104422761541638
Yes. Where are Sperbank and VTB?
I seem to remember that Rees-Mogg’s Somerset Capital owned a chunk of Sperbank but was busy offloading it earlier this month.
Then there’s its £5.7 million interest in Russia’s largest privately owned gas company Novatek PJSC-GDR.
I seem to remember that Rees-Mogg’s Somerset Capital owned a chunk of Sperbank but was busy offloading it earlier this month.
Then there’s its £5.7 million interest in Russia’s largest privately owned gas company Novatek PJSC-GDR.
That company is chaired by Vladimir Putin crony Leonid Mikhelson.
Sanctions?
Sanctions?
Johnson told the House that Roman Abromovich had already been sanctioned.
He has not.
He has a fortune estimated by Forbes in 2021 to be north of £10 billion
Yet another area where the PM does not appear to know what is going on in his own Government.
He has not.
He has a fortune estimated by Forbes in 2021 to be north of £10 billion
Yet another area where the PM does not appear to know what is going on in his own Government.
Tory MPs unhappy with the weakness of the sanctions too.
No value in waiting. Just looks weak.
No value in waiting. Just looks weak.
https://twitter.com/samfr/status/1496120648640475140
Here’s @TomTugendhat “ Clout, don’t dribble”
https://twitter.com/TomTugendhat/status/1496128193484537863
And let’s remember this…
https://twitter.com/WritesBright/status/1496116988665643017
Intensive lobbying of Foreign Office, the Conservative Party by Russian oligarchs…
Right. All perfectly normal.
Right. All perfectly normal.
https://twitter.com/fascinatorfun/status/1496482284081496068
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