The exclusion of Russia from the Swift payment system is considered a tough measure.
(Photo: imago images/Jochen Eckel)
Berlin Russia’s exclusion from the Swift international payment system is becoming more likely. In the evening, more and more European countries gave up their resistance to the measure. Germany, which had recently blocked the sanction, has now signaled partial approval.
A joint statement by Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and Economics Minister Robert Habeck said: “We are working flat out on how the collateral damage of a decoupling from Swift can be limited in such a way that it hits the right people.” And further: “What we need is a purposeful and functional limitation of Swift.”
Federal Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann also confirms concrete preparations for the exclusion of Russia: “We are working on decoupling Russia from the Swift system in such a way that collateral damage remains as small as possible.”
A spokesman for the French Foreign Ministry said on Saturday evening that there was no longer any EU country opposed to this step.
Top jobs of the day
Find the best jobs now and
be notified by email.
The change of direction towards the exclusion of Russia had previously been indicated in Italy: Social Democratic party leader Enrico Letta wrote on Twitter on Saturday that Prime Minister Mario Draghi supported corresponding measures against the Russians as a result of their invasion of Ukraine. Letta’s Partito Democratico is part of the government.
Draghi himself did not confirm this, but said that Italy fully supports the EU’s line on sanctions against Russia, “including those affecting Swift”.
Earlier on, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tweeted that Draghi told him over the phone that Italy supported Russia’s detachment from Swift. Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio wrote on Facebook in the afternoon: “With regard to the sanctions against Russia, Italy is taking a hard line: there can be no hesitation in the cruelty of this war that the Russian government has started.”
Austria too
During the international consultations on sanctions against Russia in response to the invasion of Ukraine, several European countries – including Germany as well as Italy – recently spoke out against Russia’s exclusion from Swift.
>> Read also: One reason for the Swift exclusion – and four against
Austria’s government wants to support a possible EU decision to exclude Russia from the payment system, despite reservations. “Austria will not oppose this,” said Chancellor Karl Nehammer in a TV interview on Friday evening. More important, however, are the sanctions that affect industry, banks, politicians and oligarchs in Russia. The Swift blockade “is not bringing the success that one would expect,” he said.
Most recently, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson increased the pressure on Western allies. Johnson said on Twitter on Saturday that he had spoken to Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte about the subject on the phone. An exclusion of Russia is urgently needed, the prime minister continued.
Controversial measure
The federal government has recently been increasingly isolated with its negative attitude. The move is highly controversial, mainly because it would also hit the domestic economy hard. Banks worldwide use Swift to process their payments among themselves. Excluding Russia from this communication would make it difficult to pay for imports and exports.
Exclusion from doing business with states that do not directly support the sanctions – for example India and Switzerland – would also make it more difficult. So the sanction would have an “extra-territorial” effect – beyond the sanctioning states.
However, this is countered by the fact that Germany and the EU would also be hit hard with a Swift exclusion. Europe would find it difficult to supply itself with energy without the Swift payment method. The short-term effects of the measure on the global financial system are also difficult to calculate.
It is also disputed how effective the exclusion would ultimately be – because Russia could quickly switch to a different payment system, which in turn could strengthen other allies towards the West – for example China.
More: The EU and the USA are preparing to exclude Russia from the Swift payment system. Experts consider other measures to be even more effective.