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National Bank of Greece: Cash in on Kosovo's Independence

The US is playing Checkers with Russia & Russia is Playing Chess
Russia is beginning to convert its petro dollars into petro rubles.

Russia, the world's second-largest oil-exporting nation after Saudi Arabia, has been quietly preparing to switch trading in Russian Ural Blend oil, the country's primary export, from the dollar to the ruble.

"The role of the key reserve currencies is under review," said Dmitry Medvedev, the likely successor to President Vladimir Putin, "And we must take advantage of it." "We are in Russia, and the currency is rubles, not euros, not dollars," he said. "We don't want to depend on the rise or fall of the dollar."

A move away from the dollar, meanwhile, is more glum news for the United States.

During a speech on economic policy this month, Dmitry Medvedev, a deputy prime minister and the likely successor to President Vladimir Putin in elections on March 2, said Russia should seize opportunities created by the weak dollar.