Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov provided his view on the current developments in the political arena. He thinks that the European leaders just cannot wait for the moment when they will be able to lift the sanctions from Russia, and it is the Americans who prevent them from doing it. Besides, annexation of foreign territories and breaching of the international law did not deteriorate foreign relations. The real reason is purely commercial - it is a discord on the gas pipe issue.
Mr. Siluanov said that the United States and the European Union no longer agree on some issues regarding relations with Russia. The EU economy is slowing down with the European businesses suffering huge losses, the population is starving, and this winter is going to be harsh for the Europeans. This is the real state of things according to the Russian Finance Minister. To help its European partners, the Russian government is even ready to convert foreign settlements into the euro. However, for that the European Union should be heedless of the US advice and allow construction of the Nord Stream 2. “If our European partners declare their univocal position, of course, we will consider a possibility of introducing the European monetary unit and the European infrastructure organizations for financial settlements as well as for payments for goods and services which often fall under various kinds of restrictions”, Mr. Siluanov said.
Probably, the Russian gas sphere is in a really bad state since the government is ready to make such appealing offers. So, it is up to the European leaders to decide. Remarkably, Russia, being a member of the Eurasian Economic Union, has not introduced payments in national currencies so far. Though the EEU countries such as Belarus, Armenia, and Kazakhstan have been trying to do it for 5 years already, more stable currencies instead of the ruble, tenge and dram are used for settlements.
