According to the rating agency Moody’s, Belarus failed to pay creditors on time due to Western sanctions. “Repaying a foreign exchange debt in Belarusian rubles is tantamount to a default,” Moody’s said, according to the Russian state news agency TASS. It is about interest payments over 22.9 million dollars. The government in Minsk had previously criticized western rating agencies for being biased. The explanations of the Ministry of Finance on the conversion of payments to the country’s own currency were ignored when assessing the creditworthiness. The Ministry of Finance complained that western banks had stopped processing payments as part of the sanctions. Belarus therefore had no choice but to look for other payment methods. The money was transferred to a special account at Belarusbank, which Western creditors have no access to. Before Belarus, Moody’s had already noted a default by Russia. The Russian state, although financially much stronger than the neighboring republic, was also unable to service its debts after western banks refused to process the payments due to the sanctions. Belarus is Russia’s closest ally.
Rating agency – Moody’s: Belarus defaults – Economy
