Comments by "Kristopher Driver" (@paxdriver) on "What Happens When a Country Defaults on Its Debt?" video.

Russia wasn't really a default when the lender forces the default by not allowing trade or currency exchange. It's a really strange situation technically speaking.
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@dundun8640 ya, they do. When you can't receive usd for rubles then you can't pay a usd denominated debt. Russia put the payment value in rubles in escrow as usual but couldn't convert the currency and thus couldn't make the payment. That type of default is very very different from a country deciding not to pay or being unable or unwilling to pay.
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@seneca983 they chose to offer payment in rubles, which would not have been an issue without cutting off exchanges. They could have paid in USD they received for energy, but they needed those funds given the fact it's the only access they have to usd and they're at war. That makes usd more valuable to then due to scarcity. It's like saying "you could've eaten insects instead of my cake if you're starving to death from my embargo". Ya, I could have, but the issue is you're starving me and cake is more appetizing. I wouldn't have had to eat your cake if you would let me buy groceries. I'm not defending Russia, I'm pointing out that the type of default is not standard, it's artificially provoked by the west in retaliation for Russia provoking the west by invading Ukraine unprovoked
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