Economy

US May Default on External Debt as Printing Press in Overdrive, Russia's Security Council Sec Warns

The Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Nikolai Patrushev, addressed a meeting of high-ranking representatives of the Russian Federation and officials from member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) during a video link on Monday.
Sputnik
Washington may default on its huge external debt in the foreseeable future, the Secretary of the Russian Security Council Nikolai Patrushev has warned.
Patrushev was addressing a meeting of high-ranking representatives from the Russian Federation and officials from member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) during a video link on Monday and he pointed to the fact that the US has run up a national debt in excess of $30 trillion in a fit of uncontrolled borrowing.

“Given this dynamic, there is every reason to believe that in the foreseeable future countries will have problems servicing this debt. As a result, Washington will default, as it has already done, on its obligations to Russia. Financial assets of any state denominated in US dollars, and the euro will simply be stolen," Patrushev was quoted by the press service of Russia’s Security Council as saying.

Rocketing food and energy prices were the direct result of printing presses operating in overdrive in the US and Europe, according to Patrushev.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the amount of new paper bills machine-printed by the Federal Reserve - the central bank of the United States - has grown at record rates for the past 40 years, the Secretary of the Russian Security Council emphasised.
The Fed has churned out $5.9 trillion, Europe has issued 2.9 trillion euros, and the resulting burden of inflation in the West is cynically being shifted to developing countries, Patrushev said.
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‘Irresponsibly’ Stoking Taiwan Tensions

Patrushev also weighed in on the fresh saga of mainland China-Taiwan tensions, which will inevitably affect member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
He criticized the US for deliberately stoking the fires in the volatile region, saying:
"We consider US actions aimed at provoking tensions between Beijing and Taipei absolutely irresponsible. Washington is pursuing the same policy towards the island as it has towards Ukraine. The underlying goal is to accuse China of a unilateral attempt to change the status quo over Taiwan and introduce new sanctions against Beijing."
Russia’s Security Council Secretary then lambasted the US administration for inflicting a serious blow to the Asian region with its sweeping anti-Russia sanctions over Moscow’s special military operation in Ukraine.

"You know what a truly unprecedented crisis Europe has been plunged into today; and it is caused precisely by the sanctions that the Americans have imposed on their partners to their own detriment. The destructive policy of the Americans is dealing as serious a blow to the ASEAN countries, which, for example, are now forced to buy wheat at prices that are many times higher than previously," Patrushev said.

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‘Geopolitical Expansion’

Washington hides its desire for geopolitical expansion into Asia by posing as the region’s only "protector", Patrushev stressed. He emphasized that this was shown by the NATO summit in Madrid on 28 to 30 June, which approved a new strategic concept for the alliance.
“Thus, it provides for the inclusion of the Asia-Pacific region into the realm of NATO's responsibility," Patrushev said.

“Already now we are witnessing a consistent militarization of the Asia-Pacific region, an increased military presence of the United States, NATO, Japan in regional waters, including the South China Sea," Patrushev added. According to the Russian Security Council Secretary, Washington is continuing to escalate tension, “pumping the region with weapons and arranging provocations".

Of particular danger to strategic stability is US activity regarding missile defense systems in the region, Patrushev warned, saying that under the guise of deploying supposedly defensive weapons, an offensive potential was being funneled to the region.
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According to Patrushev, Washington is gearing up to deploy strategic forces near the Korean peninsula.
"In the event of a new nuclear weapons test by the North Koreans, Washington is preparing to deploy strategic forces near the Korean Peninsula, which will lead to further degradation of the situation in the region," Russia’s Security Council Secretary stated.
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