Indonesian President Encourages Authorities to Stop Accepting Visa and Mastercard

Moscow, March 16 – Indonesian President Joko Widodo has called on the country’s regional administrations to abandon the payment networks of Mastercard and Visa amid Western sanctions, Indonesia’s Jakarta Post reports.

According to Widodo, Mastercard and Visa’s denials are necessary to protect transactions from “potential geopolitical consequences.”

“Be very careful. We have to bear in mind the US sanctions against Russia. Visa and MasterCard could be a problem,” the president said Thursday.

Widodo explained that the situation in Ukraine, with accompanying economic sanctions imposed by the United States, could create problems because economic tools, including payment systems, could be used against countries believed to be involved in the conflict.

Earlier, the Indonesian ambassador to Moscow, Jose Antonio Morato Tavares, told the News Agency that Indonesia is “considering the option of using cards of the Russian Mir payment system.”