Russia threatens to sue West if forced into ‘artificial’ Sovereign Debt Default

RUSSIA: Russia will take legal action if the West tries to force it to default on its sovereign debt, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov told Izvestia newspaper on Monday, sharpening Moscow’s tone in its financial wrestle with the West.

“Of course, we will sue because we have taken all the necessary steps to ensure that investors receive their payments,” Siluanov told the newspaper in an interview. “We will present in court our bills confirming our efforts to pay both in foreign currency and in roubles. It will not be an easy process. We will have to very actively prove our case, despite all the difficulties.”

Siluanov did not elaborate on Russia’s legal options.

Russia faces its first sovereign external default more than a century after it made arrangements to make an international bond repayment in roubles earlier this week, even though the payment was due in U.S. dollars.

Last week, Siluanov said Russia will do everything possible to make sure its creditors are paid.

“Russia tried in good faith to pay off external creditors,” Siluanov said on Monday. “Nevertheless, the deliberate policy of Western countries is to artificially create a man-made default by all means.”

Siluanov said Russia’s external liabilities amount to about 20% of the total public debt, which stood at about 21 trillion roubles ($261.7 billion). Of that, about 4.5-4.7 trillion roubles were external liabilities.

– INDIA TODAY