The Kyiv Independent
News, analyses, investigations, opinions, podcasts and more. On-the-ground reporting from Ukraine
Russian media: Several Chinese banks stop accepting yuan payments from Russia.
Several Chinese banks have stopped accepting payments from Russia in Chinese yuan, fearing ramifications of U.S. sanctions, the Russian state-controlled outlet Izvestia reported on March 21, citing representatives of the Russian baking sector and business.
These institutions include Ping An Bank, Bank of Ningbo, China Guangfa Bank, Kunshan Rural Commercial Bank, Great Wall West China Bank, Shenzhen Rural Commercial Bank, Dongguan Rural Commercial Bank, and China Zheshang Bank, said Alexey Poroshin, the director of the Pervaya Gruppa firm, in a comment for Izvestia.
While the reported issues with yuan payments began in mid-January, complications with financial transactions between Russia and China started last December amid tightening Western sanctions .
Chinese banks first reportedly began rejecting payments in U.S. dollars, which could be easily tracked by American authorities. Last month, China's Chouzhou Commercial Bank ended operations in Russia and Belarus, while three other major Chinese banks stopped accepting any payments from sanctioned Russian institutions.
According to Izvestia's sources, the recent restrictions on yuan payments are caused by concerns about secondary sanctions and pressure from the U.S.
Despite the ongoing issues, Russian businesses are finding ways to circumvent this barrier. Around 80% of Russian enterprises that regularly work with China opened branches in "friendly countries" that were not subjected to sanctions, allowing them to process the payments, Izvestia wrote.
Russian business leaders believe that the situation will likely improve in the future, as Moscow and Beijing are both interested in continued cooperation.
China has fostered close ties with Russia during its full-scale war against Ukraine, tightening economic cooperation and disrupting Western attempts at isolating Russia.
Source: SBU hits oil refineries, military airfield in Russia’s Krasnodar region.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) launched drone strikes against two oil refineries and a military airfield in Russia’s Krasnodar region overnight on April 27, a source in the security and defense forces told the Kyiv Independent.
Russia attacks Ukraine’s energy infrastructure overnight, casualties reported.
Russian forces hit energy facilities in Dnipropetrovsk, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Lviv oblasts in a mass missile attack against Ukraine overnight on April 27, causing damage and casualties, Ukrainian authorities reported.
General Staff: Russia has lost 465,054 troops in Ukraine since Feb.
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Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal announced during a government meeting that Ukraine has received approximately $12 billion in external financing since the beginning of the year to help address the budget deficit.
Norway to allocate $13.7 million for Ukrainian Leopard tank maintenance in Poland
The Norwegian Ministry of Defense revealed plans to provide up to $13.7 million for maintaining Leopard 2A4 tanks at a Polish maintenance center.
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