Russia considers cryptocurrency to avoid Ukraine-related sanctions

The Russian government is seeking ways to establish a
cryptocurrency to help avoid crippling Western sanctions for the occupation of
Ukraine, reported the ft.com news site on Jan. 2. At a recent meeting of
Russian government officials, Putin advisor Sergei Glazev said a cryptocurrency
could be useful to carry out “sensitive activity on behalf of the state,”
according to ft.com. “We can settle accounts with our counterparties all over
the world with no regard for sanctions,” Glazev said. The Kremlin is said to be
looking into the blockchain technology behind bitcoin as the basis for a “cryptoruble,”
the independent.co.uk news site reported.

Zenon Zawada: Whether or
not the Russian government pursues this plan, it confirms our view that it is
working desperately to relax or remove the Western-imposed sanctions related to
the occupation of Ukraine. Up until now, the Kremlin had been critical of
cryptocurrencies as a potential threat to state security and facilitator of
criminal activity, such as drug trafficking.

However, its increasingly precarious position
because of the sanctions is now leading top officials to overlook such
concerns, revealing that the pressure from the sanctions is intensifying. As
we’ve stated, we think the Russian government will continue to resist Western
pressure from the sanctions until the Ukrainian parliamentary elections,
scheduled for October 2019.