Russia is deploying aggressive mechanisms to achieve global dominance. The country’s latest agenda seems to be jeopardizing the US dollar’s dominance.
Recently, Russia’s prime minister, Vladimir Putin, was noted commenting on US dollar hegemony. Putin was documented urging the Middle East oil producers to ditch the US dollar for its oil purchase proceedings.
However, in the latest developments, Russia is weaponizing Gold to attack the US dollar’s supremacy. Unhinged by the sanctions imposed on the West, the country is embracing Gold as a hedge to help rejuvenate its economic prestige.
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Russia’s Gold Agenda: An End To Dollar Dominance?
According to a recent report by Asian Times, Russia is busy strategizing on pegging the Ruble to the value of gold as a robust hedge option. According to the report, Russia has long been building ways to end its dependence on the US dollar. Unfazed by the sanctions imposed on the region, the country has been preparing to embed gold into its mundane schedule, gradually weaving ways to end its dependence on the US dollar.
The report outlines staggering metrics about Russia’s gold reserves. The country is the second-largest producer of gold, producing nearly 324.7 metric tons of the precious yellow metal. This development entails a new growth aspect for the country involving making use of gold to create robust economic plans and shifts.
In early 2022, Russia had escalated plans to peg the ruble to gold. The shift was necessary in line with the country’s vision to establish global dominance.
“Russia had been preparing for Western sanctions since 2013 and managed to isolate its economy from transactions requiring American dollars,” the report later outlined.
Additionally, Putin’s plan to peg the Ruble to gold has been dubbed genius, primarily due to its enticing economic quality. Other regions have now started to explore Russian gold, bolstering the region’s economy to new levels.
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“The UK, the United States, and Canada will not touch Russian gold. But others will. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) imported 96.4 metric tons (US$6.2 billion) of Russian gold in 2022 following British sanctions. That’s up 15 times from the 2021 imports of only 1.3 metric tons (US$84.5 million),” the report later shared.
Russia’s Resilience.
Putin-led Russia is dubbed resilient as the region is still moving ahead despite encountering several economic blows. Any country battling nearly 16,000 sanctions should be in shambles, but that’s not the case with Russia.
Russia’s economic data metrics have grown consistently despite battling a crackdown by the West. The data further noted that the Russian economy and warfare have grown by 3.6% in 2023, followed by 2.6% in 2024.
The ideology of gold being the most secure asset against stark economic meltdowns seems to favor Russia.
“Countries usually want gold as a safety net to insulate against broader global financial shocks. Many central banks are purchasing gold at a breakneck pace, with 1,073 metric tons purchased in 2022.”
BRICS and Dollar Demise
The alliance of BRICS has already started to work on developing a new currency system. With the rise of multipolar currencies and calls for de-dollarization intensifying, the US dollar is encountering a noticeably difficult situation.
The Kenyan shilling is also contesting the dollar, having gained noteworthy strength against the USD as of late.