Moscow receives $ 17 billion in Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) in the new allocation made by the Fund last year
The managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva, said on March 5th that she had talked with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and assured him of a quick response to Ukraine’s request for emergency funding, Reuters reported. “I have now spoken to President Zelensky and expressed my respect for his courage and leadership,” Georgieva tweeted.
“The IMF is committed to supporting Ukraine and its people. I assured Zelensky of a quick response to Ukraine’s request for emergency financial assistance from the IMF,” the Fund’s chief added. The US Treasury Department said earlier today that Washington was determined to take “all measures” to stop Russia from taking advantage of its IMF assets.
Moscow received $ 17 billion in Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) in the new distribution made by the Fund last year. However, in order to spend this money, Russia must find a partner country ready to exchange IMF assets into base currencies in the form of interest-bearing loans. The United States and its partners will not be involved in such transactions, said a spokesman for the US agency.
According to other Reuters sources, EU officials are also examining how Russia’s influence and access to IMF funding could be curtailed. One possible option is to completely remove the country from the institution that acts as a “lender of last resort”. However, some say this will be difficult, if not impossible. Other options are being explored, such as freezing voting rights and blocking Moscow’s access to the SDR.
