Russia said Wednesday that it made a debt payment in rubles this week, a move that may not be accepted by Russia's foreign debt holders and could put the country on a path to an historic default.
The Ministry of Finance said in a statement that it tried to make a US$649 million payment toward two bonds to an unnamed U.S. bank -- previously reported as JPMorgan Chase -- but that payment was not accepted because new U.S. sanctions prohibit Russia from using U.S. banks to pay its debts.
"It is not clear to me, even if the clause is there, that Russia would be entitled to use it," said G. Mitu Gulati, a professor at the University of Virginia School of Law and an expert on sovereign debt restructurings and contracts, in an email. "That's a debatable question. I'd argue that they are not. But this would be a question for a court."
"Russia has all the resources needed to service its debts," said Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesman. "If this blocking continues and transfers for debt repayments are also blocked from these frozen funds, they can be paid out in rubles."
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