ECB Warns UK: Excluding Russia From SWIFT “Could Undermine Confidence In The Whole System”
As “isolated” Russia signs a military deal with Cyprus, agrees bilateral trade with Greece, ratifies the $100 billion BRICS Bank, and offers to trade advanced anti-aircraft missiles to Iran, it seems threats of more sanctions against Putin and his nation are finding resistance from an unexpected place. With British PM David Cameron re-demanding that Russia be excluded from the SWIFT global financial payments system, none other than ECB Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny has exclaimed, “one has to be very careful here, exclusion of Russia from Swift would be very problematic because it could potentially undermine confidence in this system as a whole.”
As Der Standard reports (via Google Translate),
A SWIFT exclusion of Russia as a sanction against the EU-Ukraine Moscow because of the crisis had last been suggested by British Prime Minister David Cameron. Nowotny said he had spoken with EU Commissioner for Economic Affairs Pierre Moscovici… the question of the Russia-EU sanctions.“I pointed out that one has to be very careful here,” the governor said. Exclusion of Russia from Swift “we would see as very problematic because it could potentially undermine confidence in this system as a whole”.
Austria would advocate a pragmatic way. His warning was not so much related to Austria, but on the credibility of the SWIFT system. This international payment system should be a neutral service, Nowotny said.
For Austria exclusion of Russia from Swift would have no immediate effect. However, Russia could then put retaliation, “and, of course, would have implications for all companies doing business in Russia there”. But he assumed that it would not come to such a step. He would not comment on the sanctions, “only if sanctioned, this is not the appropriate field.”
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