IMF axes controversial Russia visit after outrage from European capitals

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) indefinitely postponed its planned visit to Russia, according to Russian state-run media.

An IMF delegation was scheduled to travel soon to Russia for the first time since the country’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, sparking criticism from several EU governments and warnings the trip would be used by the Kremlin as propaganda. The IMF defended the visit to Russia, one of the organization’s 190 members, saying it was a treaty obligation.

But in a letter addressed to IMF boss Kristalina Georgieva last week, financial ministers from Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway, Iceland and Poland warned the visit would be “used for propaganda purposes by the Russian regime” and “create substantial reputational risks” for the Washington-based organization.

Aleksei Mozhin, Russia’s director at the IMF, told state-run TASS that the IMF had notified Russia on Monday — the same day virtual discussions were scheduled to begin ahead of the in-person visit — “that the mission’s work would be postponed indefinitely.” The reason given was “technical unreadiness of the mission to hold consultations,” he said.

Two officials told POLITICO earlier this month that the IMF had suggested holding the meeting in a third country, but eventually accepted the Kremlin’s condition that the mission must travel to Russia.