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Belarus Wants to Use Its CBDC to Evade Sanctions
Belarus has declared that it is exploring using its Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) to evade international financial sanctions, according to the Belarusian Prime Minister, Sergey Rumas. The decision was apparently taken as the country has been struggling against repeated rounds of economic sanctions from the EU, the US, and other countries—due to an increasingly authoritarian political stance.
It is unclear how the country plans to go about evading the sanctions, as CBDCs would need to be widely accepted by foreign entities in order to be effective. While it is possible that Belarus may have some framework in place in order to facilitate such acceptance, it cannot be ruled out that they are simply posturing in order to appear stronger and more resilient in the international community.
Regardless, the plan to explore using CBDCs to evade sanctions has raised further questions about the future of CBDCs and their potential implications for national sovereignty and international relations. As other countries, such as the Cayman Islands and France, have also announced their intentions to launch CBDCs, the issue may well become an increasingly important one in coming years, as it could set a precedent for other states looking to evade sanctions or gain an edge over their peers.