LONDON - The United States and Britain would seek to cut off Russian companies' access to US dollars and British pounds if the Kremlin orders an invasion of Ukraine, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the BBC.
He said the United Kingdom and the United States would stop Russian companies"trading in pounds and dollars" - a move that he said would"hit very, very hard" with its impact, the BBC reported. Russia denies it plans to annex another part of Ukraine and President Vladimir Putin says the West is sowing hysteria in a crude attempt to lure Russia into war after ignoring the Kremlin's concerns about Nato enlargement after the Cold War.
Given Russia's position as one of the world's top exporters of oil, gas and metals - which are largely priced and settled in US dollars - blocking Russian companies from access to dollar markets could have a stinging impact.Russia's largest oil company Rosneft fully switched the currency of its contracts to euros from US dollars to shield its transactions from US sanctions, CEO Igor Sechin said in 2019.
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