Following reports that Moscow had failed to pay about $100 million in interest on two bonds during a 30-day grace period that expired Sunday, the White House said the default showed the power of Western sanctions imposed on Russia since it invaded Ukraine.
“This morning’s news around the finding of Russia’s default, for the first time in more than a century, situates just how strong the reactions are that the US, along with allies and partners, have taken, as well as how dramatic the impact has been on Russia’s economy,” a senior administration official said on the sidelines of a G7 summit in Germany.
Moody’s credit ratings agency said Monday that the missed deadline “constitutes a default” and it predicted that Russia would default on more payments in the future, given a decree on June 22 by the Kremlin that it would service its foreign debt in rubles, rather than the currencies the bonds were issued in.
Russia denied it was in…
