Moscow has refuted the US accusations that the national banknote manufacturer was forging money for Libya, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Saturday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th May, 2020) Moscow has refuted the US accusations that the national banknote manufacturer was forging money for Libya, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Saturday.
The statement comes after the US Department of State late on Friday welcomed Malta's announcement of seizing $1.1 billion in the Libyan currency produced by Russia's state printing house Goznak. Washington claims the money is counterfeit and has been commissioned by an illegitimate entity.
According to the Russian ministry's statement, the contract for printing Libyan dinars was signed between Goznak and the head of the Libyan Central Bank in 2015. As part of its contractual obligations, Moscow has sent to the Central Bank in Tobruk cargo with the Libyan banknotes. The ministry added that the money was necessary to maintain the stable functioning of the entire country's economy.
"We would like to note that under the conditions of actual diarchy in Libya, there are currently two central banks. One of them is located in Tripoli, where the internationally recognized Government of National Accord, headed by Fayez Sarraj, operates. Another central bank is located in Benghazi. Its head was appointed by the popularly elected Libyan parliament, the Chamber of Deputies, and, therefore, has the necessary international legitimacy. Thus, false are not Libyan dinars, but the US statements," the ministry said.
