The Russian government held a series of meetings regarding the readiness of certain sectors of the Russian economy for sanctions that may follow in the event of an attack on Ukraine.
It is reported by The Bell, citing sources close to the government.
The meetings were held by the First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation following the results of stress tests (“exercises”) of Russian companies and systemically important banks (the list includes 13 Russian financial institutions). The possible disconnection of Russia from the SWIFT system, as well as a ban on the supply of software and other high-tech equipment, was discussed.
Representatives of the real and financial sectors of the economy, as well as infrastructure companies, in particular Russian Post, Aeroflot and Russian Railways, made their presentations.
Earlier, Russian media wrote that such “exercises” to disconnect IT infrastructure from the support of Microsoft, Nvidia, VMware, SAP and other companies were held at Sberbank.
“Everyone reports cheerfully, but in private conversations they say it’s a disaster,” said one of the interlocutors of the publication.
Another source explained that if sanctions are imposed on the conversion of the ruble into dollars, euros or the British pound, Russian banks will definitely have a problem with refinancing their external debt.
Regarding infrastructure, here the Russian Federation relies on Chinese contractors.
“Huawei is not specifically pushed, but it is a recommendation that should be taken into account in the current environment,” added a source from a large state-owned bank.
