Following the suspension of Visa and Mastercard services in Russia, at least three Russian banks have announced plans to use China’s UnionPay system to continue their financial operations. Analysts say that Russia’s strategy of evading Western sanctions through the Chinese financial system puts the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) at risk of consequences as well. On March 6, the three largest banks in Russia—Sberbank, Alfa-Bank, and Tinkoff—announced plans to start issuing credit cards powered by China’s UnionPay system. The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) has also pledged “to continue business and financial operations” with no sanctions on Russia at a press conference on March 3. ‘Only China’s Big Banks Will Comply With Russia Sanctions’ Albert Song, a senior Chinese financial analyst, says the CCP is in a dilemma over its economic ties with Russia, as some banking giants in China are going against the CBIRC pledge and are restricting …