Switzerland’s president has said it’s «very probable» the country would follow the European Union in freezing Russian assets, Reuters reported.
Ignazio Cassis, who was interviewed by Swiss public television RTS, said the seven-member Federal Council would meet Monday to review recommendations, according to the report, which ran early Monday Singapore time.
According to the report, when asked whether Switzerland would take the step, Cassis said: «It is very probable that the government will decide to do so tomorrow, but I cannot anticipate decisions not yet taken.»
Preserving Neutral Diplomacy
But he added that Switzerland’s neutrality must be preserved and it would offer its diplomatic efforts if talks between Ukraine and Russia do not succeed in reaching an armistice, according to the report.
The report noted that previously, Switzerland’s government has only said it would not let the country be used to circumvent EU sanctions. Last week, Reuters reported Switzerland told its banks to halt new business with people and entities on an EU blacklist.
Last week, Russia sent troops into Ukraine and launched missile strikes near major cities and military infrastructure, sparking a new geopolitical crisis with far-reaching implications. The West has largely united in condemnation of the move, imposing sanctions on Russia.
Russian Funds
There are significant Russian funds held outside of the country.
The country had international reserves totaling $630 billion at the end of January, consisting of $467 billion in foreign exchange and $132 billion in gold. The rest consists of special drawing rights (SDRs) and IMF reserves, Bank of Russia data showed.
Credit Suisse strategist Zoltan Pozar used Bank of Russia and financial market data to estimate that $300 billion is being held offshore, according to a «Bloomberg» (behind paywall) report.
Reuters has also reported that Russia’s richest households held around 60 percent of their wealth offshore.
