Russia seeks alternative trade to the dollar with Venezuela

The Russian ambassador in Caracas, Sergei Melik-Bagdasárov, assured in an interview with Sputnik that Russia and Venezuela continue working on alternative settlement mechanisms to the dollar.

“Russia and Venezuela have been consistently developing financial interaction mechanisms that do not depend on Western institutions. Settlements in national currencies and alternative payment instruments continue to be a priority,” declared the diplomat.

The ambassador added that both parties see in this work an element to enhance their sovereignty in the economic field.

Earlier, Melik-Bagdasarov noted that Russia and Venezuela maintain their cooperation in the energy sector, despite sanctions by the United States.

Likewise, Washington relaxed sanctions on the Venezuelan energy sector and issued two general licenses that allow global companies to resume their oil and gas operations in the country, as well as other companies to negotiate investment contracts in new operations. The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a general license allowing Chevron, BP, Eni, Shell and Repsol to resume their oil and gas operations in Venezuela.