Russia’s finance ministry is preparing to service some of its foreign currency debt on Wednesday, but such payments will be made in roubles if sanctions prevent banks from honoring debts in the currency of issue, the ministry said on Monday. “Is that a default? … From Russia’s point of view, we are fulfilling our obligations,” Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said in an interview with state TV aired on Monday. Western sanctions over events in Ukraine have cut Russia off from key parts of global financial markets and have frozen nearly half of the country’s $640 billion gold and FX reserves, triggering the worst economic crisis since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union. Siluanov said Russia has to pay coupons on its Eurobonds on March 16 and has already asked Western banks to carry out the transaction. But should a major part of Russia’s reserves be frozen, the payment could …