Russia will increase using ruble and other currencies like euro, rather than the U.S. dollar for trade, the country’s finance minister said on Sunday.
In an interview to Rossiya 1 TV, Anton Siluanov described the US dollar a “risky tool” for payments in international trade.
“We have significantly reduced our investment in the U.S. assets,” Russia Today reported Siluanov as saying. “In fact, the dollar, which is considered to be the international currency -- becomes a risky tool for payments,” he said.
The statement came after Washington announced its plans to impose sanctions on Moscow over alleged poisoning of a Russian agent and his daughter on UK soil.
Sergei and Yulia Skripal were poisoned by a nerve agent in March in the southern English city of Salisbury.
The British government has blamed the incident on Russia, linking the nerve agent to a series of Russia-developed chemical weapons collectively known as Novichok.
The Kremlin has rejected the allegations.
The Skripals have since recovered from the alleged assassination attempt.
