The United States Treasury on Monday blocked Russia from making debt payments using dollars held at U.S. banks, a move that could force Russia to deplete its domestically held dollar reserves or even default on its loans, Reuters reported Tuesday.
According to Reuters, Russia had two payments due on Monday — "a $552.4 million principal payment on a maturing bond" and an "$84 million coupon payment ... on a 2042 sovereign dollar bond" — both of which were blocked by the Treasury.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The Treasury's new restrictions come as multiple nations have imposed or threatened new sanctions against Russia after Ukrainian forces discovered hundreds of dead civilians in the Kyiv suburbs.
On Tuesday, Reuters reported, the European Union announced that it would ban imports of Russian "coal, wood, chemicals and other products worth about nine billion euros ($9.86 billion) a year."
Despite the international crackdown on Russia's economy, however, the Russian rouble has rebounded to its pre-war value, The Washington Post reported Thursday. The Post attributed the recovery to a mixture of strong oil and natural gas exports, limits on currency exchange imposed by Russia's central bank, and a decline in "panicked customer withdrawals."
-
6 homes built in the 1700sFeature Featuring a restored Federal-style estate in Virginia and quaint farm in Connecticut
-
Tariffs: Will Trump’s reversal lower prices?Feature Retailers may not pass on the savings from tariff reductions to consumers
-
American antisemitismFeature The world’s oldest hatred is on the rise in U.S. Why?
-
US, Kyiv report progress on shifting Ukraine peace planSpeed Read The deal ‘must fully uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty,’ the countries said
-
Judge halts Trump’s DC Guard deploymentSpeed Read The Trump administration has ‘infringed upon the District’s right to govern itself,’ the judge ruled
-
Trump accuses Democrats of sedition meriting ‘death’Speed Read The president called for Democratic lawmakers to be arrested for urging the military to refuse illegal orders
-
Defeating Russia’s shadow fleetThe Explainer A growing number of uninsured and falsely registered vessels are entering international waters, dodging EU sanctions on Moscow’s oil and gas
-
Court strikes down Texas GOP gerrymanderSpeed Read The Texas congressional map ordered by Trump is likely an illegal racial gerrymander, the court ruled
-
Trump defends Saudi prince, shrugs off Khashoggi murderSpeed Read The president rebuked an ABC News reporter for asking Mohammed bin Salman about the death of a Washington Post journalist at the Saudi Consulate in 2018
-
Congress passes bill to force release of Epstein filesSpeed Read The Justice Department will release all files from its Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking investigation
-
Trump says he will sell F-35 jets to Saudi ArabiaSpeed Read The president plans to make several deals with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman this week
