Russia to be cut off from Swift only as a last resort

British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said during a joint press conference with his Polish counterpart Grzegorz Schetyna that Russia's disconnecting from the SWIFT system would be a very serious measure.

"Cutting off Russia from the SWIFT system would be an extreme measure," Interfax cited him as saying.

The head of the Foreign Office said that in the case of the introduction of such measures, the economy of both Russia and other countries would be significantly affected.

"Exclusion from SWIFT is an extreme option," Schetyna said.

At the same time, he noted that the EU should have new sanctions ready against Russia, but "there is no point in discussing it publicly."