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The US dominance of international financial transfers known as SWIFT is being affected as nations like Russia are concerned about US dominance and US sanctions. Sanctions have motivated Russia to take bold steps and it may take more:

Russia Is Prepared To Disconnect From SWIFT Payment System: Foreign Ministry

Russia is preparing to depart from the international payment system SWIFT, Maria Zakharova, Russia’s Defense Ministry spokeswoman said, in an interview with RT.

According to her, disconnecting from SWIFT was “hypothetical” currently, but not at all impossible.

“The possibility of being disconnected from SWIFT is still considered as hypothetical. Nevertheless, inter-minsistry work is underway to minimize the risks and economic damage if our country’s access to the usual international financial instruments and payment mechanisms is limited. The Financial Messaging System of the Bank of Russia is an example of such alternative instruments. At the moment, options for its pairing with foreign counterparts – European SEPA, Iranian SEPAM, Chinese CUP and CIPS, are being discussed,” she said.

Zakharova pointed out that cooperation between the Russian payment system “MIR” and foreign counterparts, in particular, the Chinese UnionPay, the Japanese JCB and the international Maestro are developing.

These payments providers operate both in Russia and abroad. However, it is too early to talk about the specific timing for the completion of a comprehensive national toolkit for payment transactions and its promotion to international markets, as this is a lengthy and time-consuming process.

“In parallel, Russia is actively exploring the opportunities provided by modern digital technologies, the potential of their use to increase the stability and independence of the national financial system and means of payment, with the clear understanding that digital money can in the future become the foundation of the updated international financial system and cross-border settlement operations,” the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman concluded.

“Similar co-branding cards work both in Russia and abroad. In particular, various operations on them are already available in Armenia, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkey,” she said.

According to her, this is a rather long-term and time-consuming process. Zakharova noted that “it is too early to talk about any specific terms in terms of completing the creation of a comprehensive national toolkit in the implementation of payment transactions and its promotion to international markets.”

Andrei Krutskikh, Director of the Department of International Information Security of the Russian Foreign Ministry, said that the Russian side is ready to respond if it is disconnected from the international payment system SWIFT.

Russia has been attempting to push its Mir payment system since 2019, with Russian lawmakers backing the international use of a Russian alternative system for the global financial messaging network SWIFT designed by Moscow to eliminate the risk of Western sanctions.

Back then, Russia held talks with China, India, Iran and Turkey about joint use of Russia’s financial messaging system, said Anatoly Aksakov, who heads the Russian Banking Association and a financial committee with the lower house of parliament. 05/05/21 https://southfront.org/russia-is-prepared-to-disconnect-from-swift-payment-system-foreign-ministry/

Can this hurt the USA?

Yes. By having alternatives to US dollar-dominated financial systems, it provides openings for others to not use the US dollar and hence decrease wealth that the US gets from its dominance of international finance. This also decreases the so-called “soft-power” that the US has to influence various international matters.

Are these moves away from SWIFT simply Russian or Chinese propaganda?

No.

Notice something from the Wall Street Journal back in 2018:

Swift is particularly prone to U.S. pressure because the American financial system looms so large in the world. Swift’s board includes representatives of European and American banks, and many messages across its network travel to or from the U.S. Some Europeans believe Washington wields too much influence over a network they think should operate on a multilateral consensus like a financial EU. 10/17/18 https://www.wsj.com/articles/europes-not-so-swift-diplomacy-1539730896

Here is some information about SWIFT:

The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) provides a network that enables financial institutions worldwide to send and receive information about financial transactions in a secure, standardized and reliable environment. SWIFT also sells software and services to financial institutions, much of it for use on the SWIFTNet network, and ISO 9362. Business Identifier Codes (BICs, previously Bank Identifier Codes) are popularly known as “SWIFT codes”.

The majority of international interbank messages use the SWIFT network. As of 2015, SWIFT linked more than 11,000 financial institutions in more than 200 countries and territories, who were exchanging an average of over 15 million messages per day (compared to an average of 2.4 million daily messages in 1995). (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. Wikipedia, retrieved 04/01/19)

Basically, most international cross-border payments seem to use SWIFT.

Because of US sanctions and threats of sanctions, and its pressure on SWIFT, many nations are looking to develop ways to bypass it.

Notice also the following back in 2018 from the German press:

Germany urges SWIFT end to US payments dominance

27 August 2018

Work on creating a European payment system independent of the dominant existing international system SWIFT has already begun, Germany’s Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said at the opening of an ambassadors’ conference at the foreign ministry in Berlin on Monday.

“We must increase Europe’s autonomy and sovereignty in trade, economic and financial policies,” he said. “It will not be easy, but we have already begun to do it.” …

Thorsten Benner, director of Berlin-based think tank Global Public Policy Institute told DW, that the US would “for sure seek to divide and pressure the EU” on this. “The EU developing an independent system making it immune from US sanctions, very much threatens key US interests in the perception of the Trump administration.” …

Benner believes. “For salvaging Iran deal, the EU will have to rely on China.”

China can keep Iran afloat with increasing crude purchases and making sure that crude exports don’t fall prey to US sanctions.

“China has the necessary independent system for this if it so chooses to use it,” Benner said, adding that there was a certain irony in the fact that SWIFT was based in Europe — the yery same continent that was now forced to create an alternative system to it.

“But that’s the direct effect of the US weaponization of interdependence and choke points such as SWIFT. The EU played along as long as it was in its interest and now it’s biting back as secondary sanctions target EU and its key foreign policy interests,” Benner concluded.  https://www.dw.com/en/germany-urges-swift-end-to-us-payments-dominance/a-45242528

Now, notice something related to that in 2018 from Bloomberg:

EU Looking to Sidestep U.S. Sanctions With Payments System Plan

Germany and France said they’re working on financing solutions to sidestep U.S. sanctions against countries such as Iran, including a possible role for central banks.

The discussions … are a signal that European powers are trying to get serious about demonstrating a greater level of independence from the U.S. as President Donald Trump pursues his “America First” agenda.

“With Germany, we are determined to work on an independent European or Franco-German financing tool which would allow us to avoid being the collateral victims of U.S. extra-territorial sanctions,” French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said Monday during a meeting with press association AJEF. “I want Europe to be a sovereign continent not a vassal, and that means having totally independent financing instruments that do not today exist.” https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-08-27/eu-looking-to-sidestep-u-s-sanctions-with-payments-system-plan

The EU no longer wishes to be a ‘vassal’ state under the USA.

Now see what happened in Europe in 2019:

June 28, 2019

Europe announced that the special trade channel, Instex, that will allow European firms to avoid SWIFT and bypass American sanctions on Iran, is now operational.

Following a meeting between the countries who signed the Iran nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which was ditched by US, French, British and German officials said the trade mechanism which was proposed last summer and called Instex, is now operational. …

The statement came after the remaining signatures of JCPOA gathered in Vienna for a meeting that Iranian ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi called “the last chance for the remaining parties…to gather and see how they can meet their commitments towards Iran.” … opponents of Instex – almost exclusively the US – have argued that the mechanism is flawed because the Iranian institution designated to work with Instex, the Special Trade and Finance Instrument, has shareholders with links to entities already facing sanctions from the U.S. …

The announcement will likely send president Trump off the rails, because in late May Bloomberg reported that as part of Trump’s escalating battle with “European allies” over the fate of the Iran nuclear accord, he was “threatening penalties against the financial body created by Germany, the U.K. and France to shield trade with the Islamic Republic from U.S. sanctions” including the loss of access to the US financial system.

According to Bloomberg, the Treasury Department’s undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, Sigal Mandelker, sent a letter on May 7 warning that Instex, the European SPV to sustain trade with Tehran, and anyone associated with it could be barred from the U.S. financial system if it goes into effect.

“I urge you to carefully consider the potential sanctions exposure of Instex,” Mandelker wrote in an ominous letter to Instex President Per Fischer. “Engaging in activities that run afoul of U.S. sanctions can result in severe consequences, including a loss of access to the U.S. financial system.”

Germany, France and the U.K. finalized the Instex system in January, allowing companies to trade with Iran without the use of U.S. dollars or American banks, allowing them to get around wide-ranging U.S. sanctions that were imposed after the Trump administration abandoned the 2015 Iran nuclear deal last year. https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-06-28/trump-unleash-hell-europe-after-eu-says-spv-circumvent-swift-and-iran-sanctions-now

This is something I have been warning about for some time.

Can this hurt the USA?

If fully implemented, yes Instex could.

This modified ‘Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges’ (INSTEX) will provide a major alternative to the main US dollar-dominated financial systems. I call it modified, because originally the USA was involved in parts of its development.

Even if Europe decides against using this with Iran, it can use Instex to trade with other nations–including Russia, China, and India.

It provides openings for others to not use the US dollar and hence decrease wealth that the US gets from its dominance of international finance.

Dethroning the US dollar will cause massive economic problems for the USA. Much more than almost anyone believes. The standard of living in the USA has been raised/subsidized for decades because of the status of the US dollar. That status is weakening. This will ultimately severely hurt the USA.

What will happen to the economy of the USA will be much worse than what happened to the UK when the pound sterling lost its status as the world’s primary reserve currency.

We are getting closer to the great tribulation (Matthew 24:21; see also When Will the Great Tribulation Begin?) and final time of the Gentiles (Luke 21:24) that Jesus spoke of.

Gentiles are taking steps that the Anglo-American nations will one day regret.

Clearly Church of God predictions, based upon biblical prophecies, that the Anglo-American dominated world financial order would be dethroned are in the process of coming to pass.

While you may not think that these steps are proof, consider that, at least since the days of the old Radio Church of God, Church of God writers have said to watch Europe and that it would rise up to dominate. Furthermore consider that in 1971, the old Worldwide Church of God clearly taught that the Europeans would get their own currency:

Envision the startling future of Western Europe… A “United States of Europe” possessing one single currency – a currency so strong that it will replace the U.S. dollar as the kingpin currency of world trade. (Hogberg G. EUROPE’S COMMON MARKET RISING WORLD COLOSSUS. Plain Truth, May 1971)

The Europeans do have their own currency, and while it has not yet replaced the dollar, the time will come when the world will NOT keep the US dollar as its primary reserve currency.

Of course, to replace the USA dollar it will take many nations to turn away from it.

But the USA has been pushing many to do so.

Instead of accepting USA tariffs and sanction ‘punishments’ and doing nothing, various nations have been taking steps.

Notice a video we put out related to this:

The Biden-Harris Administration has pushed additional sanctions as well as threats related to Russia and China.

Furthermore, China also has been trying to come up with systems, including with gold backing, to avoid the US dollar (see ZH: Is China Preparing A Gold-Backed Yuan: Beijing Greenlights Purchases Of Billions In Bullion and watch US Dollar being challenged by Gold-Petro-Yuan).

As far as gold goes, notice some 2019 statements from former US Congressman Ron Paul:

“They’re pouring in massive amounts of money. The balance sheet is growing by leaps and bounds. It sort of reminds you of QE, but the establishment says, ‘No, you don’t call this QE. That scares people so call it something else.’”

“I think it’s a fragile situation. I don’t believe just printing more money is going to be satisfactory for everybody. … Powell is doing exactly what Trump wants, and I know exactly what must be going through Trump’s mind. Can we get this election here soon before the big event occurs? And that’s why they will never let up on the Fed.”

“The central banks of the world are looking at gold again.”

“It’s going to be hard to get a new currency or restore our currency without the use of gold.”

“An alternate currency for me right now is the constitutional money of silver and gold.” 10/2919 https://schiffgold.com/videos/ron-paul-foreign-central-banks-going-for-gold/

The USA has been pushing countries away from its currency through sanctions and programs like quantitative easing (QE) and running massive government deficits. That is part of why many have been accumulating gold.

Notice also the following from 2018 by Michael Krieger:

The Tectonic Plates of Geopolitics Are Starting to Shift

The United States is currently waging economic warfare against one tenth of the world’s countries with cumulative population of nearly 2 billion people and combined gross domestic product (GDP) of more than $15 trillion.

These include Russia, Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Myanmar, the Democratic Republic of Congo, North Korea and others on which Washington has imposed sanctions over the years, but also countries like China, Pakistan and Turkey which are not under full sanctions but rather targets of other punitive economic measures. …

I think history will show Trump’s decision to unilaterally scrap the Iran deal (JCPOA) was the catalyst that caused much of rest of the world to get serious about creating alternative financial rails on which to conduct global business. Nation-states the world over are coming to the obvious conclusion that it’s virtually impossible to execute independent foreign policy in the content of a global financial system so completely dominated by the U.S. …

We’re beginning to see the emergence of a global consensus related to two crucial geopolitical perspectives:

1. A growing understanding that a world unilaterally controlled by an imperial U.S. which demands all other nations accept vassal status is no longer tenable.
2. Recognition that a more multi-polar world cannot truly come into being without displacing, or at the very least creating, a viable alternative(s) to the USD-centric global financial system. …

I expect the world to be entirely different in structure by around 2025. https://libertyblitzkrieg.com/2018/08/27/the-tectonic-plates-of-geopolitics-are-starting-to-shift/

Michael Krieger may well be right that we could have a world with what would be considered an entirely different structure by 2025. The end of humanities 6000 years of human rule is getting closer and it will end with the final time of the Gentiles. This rise coincides with the end of the Anglo-American world order.

We are getting closer to the great tribulation (Matthew 24:21; see also When Will the Great Tribulation Begin?) and final time of the Gentiles (Luke 21:24) that Jesus spoke of.

Gentiles have been taking steps that the Anglo-American nations will one day regret.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

The End of US Dollar Dominance Is the USA losing its economic status? What about the petro-gold-yuan? A related video is also available: US Dollar being challenged by Gold-Petro-Yuan.
The Plain Truth About Gold in Prophecy. How Should a Christian View Gold? What do economists and the Bible teach about gold? Gold and silver may drop in value. Inflation/deflation? What do Christians need to know about gold? A video of related interest may be: Germany, Gold, and the US Dollar.
Gentile Cryptocurrency Proposal Two Russian leaders have called for a BRICS-wide and/or EAEU-wide cryptocurrency. This is hoped to be used to replace the US dollar for international trade. BRICS stands for Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The BRICS nations represent 3.6 billion people. The EAEU includes Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. Will Gentiles rise up? Are there any prophetic ramifications of what these nations are looking to do? This is a video.
USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses Can you point to scriptures, like Daniel 11:39, that point to the USA in the 21st century? This article does. Two related sermon are available: Identifying the USA and its Destruction in Prophecy and Do these 7 prophesies point to the end of the USA?
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Saxon (non-Dutch) Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to Jerusalem and the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo-Saxon nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first? Here is a link to the Spanish version of this article: Anglo-América & las Tribus Perdidas de Israel. Information is also in the YouTube sermons titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter? and British are the Covenant People. A short YouTube of prophetic interest may be: Are Chinese threats against Australia for real?
Will the Anglo-Saxon-Celtic Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What about Jerusalem? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people? Here is a link to a video titled Will the USA and other Anglo-nations be Divided and Their People Made Slaves? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Serán divididas las naciones anglosajonas?
British are the Covenant People What do ‘British’ and ‘Britain’ mean in Hebrew? Are the descendants of the Anglo-Saxons people of the covenant? Does the British royal family connect to the throne of David? What does the Bible teach? What does history show us? Is there any DNA evidence related to British-Israelism? When did Christianity make it to the British Isles? Could Jeremiah have made it to the British Isles? What type of Christians made it to the British Isles? Did the last King of England believe in British Israelism?
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2028 or or 2031 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
Might the U.S.A. Be Gone by 2028? Are there prophetic reasons to believe that the USA will not last two complete presidential terms? Yes. There is a tradition attributed to the Hebrew prophet Elijah that humanity had 6,000 years to live before being replaced by God’s Kingdom. There are scriptures, writings in the Talmud, early Christian teachings that support this. Also, even certain Hindu writings support it. Here is a link to a related video: Is the USA prophesied to be destroyed by 2028? In Spanish: Seran los Estados Unidos Destruidos en el 2028?
The Great Tribulation: What Happens First? What events have happened? What are some events that are now happening? And what events need to happen for the Great Tribulation to start? Here is a link to a related sermon video: Counting Down to the Great Tribulation. Here is a video in the Spanish language: Contando los eventos y el inicio de la Gran Tribulación.
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2021, 2022, or 2023? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? A related video is: 2021: The Great Tribulation or the Great Reset? Here is a video in the Spanish language: Es El 2021 el año  de La Gran Tribulación o el Grande Reseteo Financiero.
The Times of the Gentiles Has there been more than one time of the Gentiles? Are we in it now or in the time of Anglo-America? What will the final time of the Gentiles be like? A related sermon is available and is titled: The Times of the Gentiles.
Armageddon Who is involved and when will this gathering happen? Here is also a video from Dr. Thiel, from Tel Megiddo in Israel: Armageddon. Other videos include: Armageddon Will it come on Trump’s watch?, Iraq, Armageddon, & Prophecy, Freemasonry, Armageddon, and Rome, Is China paving roads to Armageddon?, and Jordan, Petra, and Armageddon.
Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe? Here is a link to a video titled: Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?
European Technology and the Beast of Revelation Will the coming European Beast power would use and develop technology that will result in the taking over of the USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies? Is this possible? What does the Bible teach? Here is a related YouTube video: Military Technology and the Beast of Revelation.
Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations? Some claim that these passages refer to a gathering of 10 currently existing nations together, while one group teaches that this is referring to 11 nations getting together. Is that what Revelation 17:12-13 refers to? The ramifications of misunderstanding this are enormous. A related sermon is titled Ten Kings of Revelation and the Great Tribulation.
WTO/TTIP and the Babylonian Beast Will international trade agreements like WTO/TTIP/CETA lead to the fulfillment of end time prophecies concerning the Babylonian Beast power that the Book of Revelation warns against? What does the Bible teach? A related video would be WTO Trade Deal and the Rise of the European Beast Power.
Spiritual Samaritans: Old and New Who were the Samaritans? Do the represent true Christianity or something else? Here is a link to a related sermon: USA in Prophecy: Samaria.
China, Its Biblical Past and Future, Part 1: Genesis and Chinese Characters Where did the Chinese people come from? Japeth, Javan, Magog? Is there evidence that the Chinese peoples must have known about various accounts in the Book of Genesis up until their dispersion after the Tower of Babel? What do Chinese writings and characters help show? What about the Garden of Eden, Noah’s Flood, and the Tower of Babel? Here is a link to a version of this article in Spanish: ¿Prueban los caracteres chinos la exactitud de la Biblia? A related sermon is also available: China’s biblical past and prophetic actions.
China, Its Biblical Past and Future, Part 2: The Sabbath and Some of God’s Witness in China When did Christianity first come to China? What about the Apostle Thomas? Did Confucius say anything to get the Chinese to possibly consider Christianity? Is there early evidence that they observed the seventh day sabbath? What about the Ten Commandments? What type of Church of God witness has there been to China? What has been happening with China that ties it together with prophecies in Revelation? What about the 200 million man army and Armageddon? What about the Belt and Road Initiative and end time Babylon the Great? A related sermon is also available: China’s biblical past and prophetic actions. Watch also China’s Silk Road and Babylon the Great.
Asia in Prophecy What is Ahead for Asia? Who are the “Kings of the East”? What will happen to nearly all the Chinese, Russians, Indians, and others of Asia? China in prophecy, where? Who has the 200,000,000 man army related to Armageddon? Here is a link to a related sermon: Asia in Prophecy. Two YouTube video are Is China THE Threat to the United States of America? and China: A King of the East.
The Eurasian Union, the Kings of the East, and Bible Prophecy Is there a Eurasian union that will be formed? Is one being formed right now? Are any leaders working on that in the 21st century? Does the Bible teach that there will be a Eurasian union? If some type of Eurasian union is formed, who might it benefit and who will it destroy? A related video would be Is The Eurasian Union Rising?
Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future Russia in prophecy. Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end? There is also a video sermon available: Russia in the Bible and in Prophecy and a video sermonette available: Ukraine in Prophecy?
Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach? Here is a link to a video, also titled Is Russia the King of the North?
Ezekiel 38: For Russia & Iran in Our Day? Is Ezekiel 38 about to be fulfilled? A related video is available titled Ezekiel 38: For Russia, Ukraine, & Iran Now? Another could be Russia, Iran, Syria, & the Bible (Code).
Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction Can the USA survive two full presidential terms? In what ways are Joe Biden and Kamala Harris apocalyptic? This book has hundreds of prophecies and scriptures to provide details.  A Kindle version is also available and you do not need an actual Kindle device to read it. Why? Amazon will allow you to download it to almost any device: Please click HERE to download one of Amazon s Free Reader Apps. After you go to your free Kindle reader app (or if you already have one or a Kindle),  you can go to: Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction (Kindle) to get the book in seconds.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, May 6th, 2021 at 3:30 pm and is filed under Prophecy.

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