have cut Russia off from key parts of global financial markets, triggering its worst economic crisis since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union.
Several Russian banks have been banned from the SWIFT international payments network, hampering efforts to move money outside of Russia. “The freezing of the central bank and government’s foreign currency accounts can be seen as a desire from several Western countries to organise an artificial default,” Siluanov said.Last week, Russia sought to retaliate against Western sanctions imposed over its invasion of Ukraine by banning exports of certain goods and agricultural commodities.