Russian banks will be disconnected from SWIFT soon. Half of the reserves of the Russian Central Bank have already been blocked. This was announced at a briefing on Tuesday, March 1, by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba.
"The disconnection of Russian banks from SWIFT should take place soon. We demand a full embargo on trade in Russian oil and gas. The first decisions in this direction have already been made by Canada. And this wave will continue to grow. The EU, the United States, Britain and a number of other countries have already announced new sanctions. In particular, Australia. Switzerland has joined EU sanctions for the first time in its history," he said.
Kuleba stressed that even previously cautious Asia is joining the anti-Putin coalition. "Singapore imposes restrictions on export controls. Sanctions against Russian banks and the cessation of flights. Devastating blows were inflicted on the Central Bank of Russia… This blocks more than half of Russia's reserves," said the head of the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Minister stressed that Ukraine continues to receive humanitarian aid from around the world. "The necessary cargo comes from France, Slovakia, Switzerland, India, Estonia and Lithuania. Last night, Britain sent a large cargo through Poland with medical supplies. In total, London has allocated 40 million pounds for humanitarian aid. This is only a small part of the aid we receive from all over the world," Kuleba said.
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 its 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.