Russia, Africa, To Drop US Dollar and Euro In Trade Settlements

• Russia, Africa, To Drop US Dollar and Euro In Trade Settlements
  by Chris Devonshire-Ellis, https://www.russia-briefing.com/
  Russia and African nations are moving towards settlements in national currencies, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated on Wednesday, (January 18) adding that the parties are preparing documents on rearranging the mechanism of cooperation under Western sanctions.
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  Lavrov’s announcement was made during a press conference on the results of the activities of Russian diplomacy in 2022. The official earlier stated that Russian and African partners are working on reducing, though gradually, trade in the US Dollar and the Euro in mutual trade payments.
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  “As you know, we are planning a second summit with Africa this year, at the end of July in St. Petersburg, and we are preparing a whole series of events for it, documents are being prepared to reconfigure the mechanisms of interaction in the face of sanctions and threats, we will create new tools for trade and investment cooperation, supply chain systems, and payments,” Lavrov stated, adding “There is a transition to settlements in national currencies, this process is not fast, but it is underway and it is gaining momentum.”
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  Moscow has been steadily pursuing a policy of de-dollarization in foreign trade. In recent years, Russia and some of its trade partners, including India and China, have been ramping up the use of domestic currencies in mutual settlements in an effort to move away from the US Dollar and Euro. Saudi Arabia has also just announced it will be following a similar policy.
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  Russia’s expansion of military, economic, and political cooperation with Africa has grown in recent years. For example, Russia signed more than 20 bilateral agreements with African countries and has increased its trade volume with the continent. Sergey Lavrov, the Russian Foreign Minister, visited four African nations last year, visiting Egypt, Ethiopia, Uganda, and the Republic of Congo.
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  Lavrov wrote an article, “Russia and Africa: A Future-Bound Partnership” at that time, which was widely circulated amongst African media. In it, Lavrov expressed his gratitude to the African countries that did not support the UN General Assembly resolution in March condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In total, 24 out of the 54 African states abstained or were absent from the vote.
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