Russian President Vladimir Putin has asked the government to ensure in 2023 an increase in the volume of trade in national currencies with the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and other friendly states. This was reported on January 26 on the Kremlin website.
As follows from the message, the corresponding instruction was given following the meeting of the Council for Strategic Development and National Projects, which took place on December 15 last year.
Thus, the President instructed to pay special attention to ensuring in 2023 the outstripping growth rates of foreign trade with the CIS member states and other friendly states, including with the countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America, “taking into account the implementation of settlements and payments in the national currencies of the Russian Federation and friendly states.”
The Government of the Russian Federation, together with the Central Bank and the heads of the regions, will have to implement this order.
Last December Yaroslav Ostrovsky, a specialist in the strategic research department at Total Research, recalled that Russia had been reducing the dependence of the economy on the euro and the dollar for several years, and a smooth turn to Asia accelerated sharply this year.
According to him, the more countries will refuse to use the dollar in the calculations, the less will be the dependence on the United States and the less the risk of the West’s influence on political and economic decisions.
Prior to that, on November 17, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Foreign Ministry Alexander Pankin said that on the sidelines of the G20 summit, Russia discussed with a number of countries the expansion of settlements in national currencies.
On October 14, Putin announced that the CIS countries were making vigorous efforts to switch to settlements in national currencies. A day earlier, the head of state noted the need to revise the global financial system. The transition to national currencies will strengthen the economic sovereignty of states, he believes.