The United States is seriously considering disconnecting the Russian Federation from the SWIFT system of international payments and communications due to its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
This was reported by Bloomberg, citing informed sources.
According to them, the administration of US President Joe Biden is discussing necessity for getting directive from the EU to exclude Russia from SWIFT. Sources say that this decision is inevitable in general.
Earlier, the United States did not support disconnection of Russian Federation from this system, especially because of European countries concern about the economic consequences they would have.
While Russian President Vladimir Putin goes on a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, including Kyiv, Western officials are working on tougher consequences for Russia.
Decisions on disconnection are supported by Italy, the Netherlands, France, and the United Kingdom is ready to discuss it.
The United States has no right to block Russia from SWIFT single-handedly. The organization will suspend access only if the EU has imposed sanctions against the target organization or country. The consent of all 27 EU members is required.
SWIFT, meaning the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications, is controlled by the National Bank of Belgium and representatives of central banks from the United States, Britain, the EU, Japan, Russia, China and others. It delivers secure messages to more than 11,000 financial institutions and companies in more than 200 countries and territories.
SWIFT has blocked access to the country only once in history: in 2012, with the help of an EU directive, it blocked Iran as part of a series of measures aimed at curbing the Islamic Republic's nuclear program.