Russia and Belarus are on the brink of default - the chief economist of the World Bank

This forecast was given by the chief economist of the World Bank Carmen Reinhart in an interview for Reuters, informs Espresso.TV

According to Reinhart, so far most of the world's credit agencies do not consider such a scenario inevitable, but its probability is growing rapidly.

Fitch Ratings downgraded Russia's rating by six positions on Tuesday, saying a default was imminent as sanctions and trade restrictions undermined Russia's ability to service its debt. About half of Russia's sovereign bonds in hard currency belong to foreign investors, and on March 16 they will have to pay $107 billion in coupon payments on two types of bonds. In addition, Russian corporations have outstanding international bonds worth nearly $100 billion. Russia and its residents owe foreign banks just over $121 billion.

"I'm worried about what I don't see. Financial institutions are well-capitalized, but their balance sheets are often opaque ... There is a problem of defaults in the Russian private sector," Reinhart said.

It should be reminded that the IMF approved $1.4 billion in emergency aid to Ukraine.