Russia's Foreign Debt: Dynamic, Structure, and Risks of the Conditions of Western Economic Sanctions

At the start of the twenty-first century, thanks to the increase in income from exports, Russia managed to cancel the foreign debt inherited from the Soviet Union. However, beginning in 2006 Russian companies and banks, including those controlled by the state, began to borrow from European and US banks, leading to a deep dependence on loans from these banks, and the growth of Russia's corporate foreign debt. The conflict in Ukraine and the introduction of Western sanctions against Russia in 2014 radically changed the situation with regard to the foreign debt held by the country.