Russia Monitoring US Economy Amid Possible Default, Says Official

Russia is closely monitoring the U.S. economy amid discussions of the U.S. government defaulting on its debt obligations. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the Treasury will be unable to pay the government’s bills if Congress does not act by June 1.

Russia is closely monitoring the state of the U.S. economy as discussions of possible debt default intensify, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday.

“We see that the U.S. economy, just as the global economy, is currently experiencing certain problems,” Peskov was quoted by Russian news outlet Tass as saying. “Inflation expectations continue staying at a rather high level,” he stressed, adding:

Certainly, we are keeping a close eye on all that. All our fiscal agencies.

The United States is currently facing a debt ceiling crisis. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned on Monday that the Treasury Department will not be able to pay all of the government’s debt obligations by June 1 if Congress does not raise or suspend the debt ceiling.

Noting that this is not the first time serious problems have emerged in the U.S. economy, the Kremlin spokesperson described:

This occurs in the United States on an incredibly regular basis … They found solutions up to now. We will take a close look this time also.

Since 1960, Congress has acted 78 separate times to permanently raise, temporarily extend, or revise the definition of the debt limit, according to the U.S. Treasury Department’s website.

In addition to monitoring the U.S. economic situation, Russia is also ramping up its de-dollarization efforts after the U.S. seized about $300 billion in the Russian central bank assets frozen by sanctions.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said last week that U.S. policies will backfire as Russia expands relations with friendly countries in Eurasia, Africa, and Latin America. Russia is also discussing creating a common BRICS currency with member countries. The BRICS nations comprise Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The chairman of the State Duma Committee on the Financial Market said last week that an agreement on the BRICS currency can be reached in 2023.

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