The paper's relevance is substantiated by the fact that today a rapid growth of external debt of the most developed countries of the world (including European Union (EU) countries) is one of the most acute problems of the modern world economy and global finance. The paper aims to assess the degree of the external debt burden of various EU countries and evaluate the prospects of solving external debt problems in the EU. The article focuses on dynamics, composition, and specifics shaping the EU countries' external debt based on comparative, economic, statistical, and graphical analysis. Special attention we paid to the analysis of specifics of the EU countries' sovereign external debt composition connected with the acute problem of the rapid growth of public debt in general. The paper examines the ratio of public external and internal debt in various EU countries. It determines the EU particular countries where public external debt is shaping based on either cross-border or domestic model. The research results reveal a high degree of dependence of the EU economy on international debt finance. Gross external debt and sovereign external debt of the EU countries are still growing, and its distribution among various member states is very uneven. The structural imbalance of the EU countries' net external debt has also been revealed: the number of net borrowers is double that of net lenders. According to the basic external debt sustainability indicators, some EU countries are in a pretty tricky situation and entirely depend on the possibility of external debt refinancing.

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Russia as the main object of the Western sanctions is forced to look for alternative mechanisms of international settlements. The establishment of a new mechanism of international settlements without the US dollar is the basic condition for further transformation of global monetary system, which will become an incentive for the development of fair international relations. Digitalization provides new opportunities for world economy. At present trading on digital platforms using electronic payment units actively competes with traditional forms of trade relations. The level of digitalization of world economy makes it possible to create a new system based on fairer relations and attracting more countries. There is not only a technical, but also social and economic option to replace the US dollar in international economic relations with more universal, convenient and reliable instruments that do not have national affiliation and political engagement. The authors propose to establish a digital international settlements platform (DISP) which makes it possible to guarantee avoiding external data manipulation. Such a platform could provide participants with the possibility of using national currencies in international settlements, with cross rates based on real purchasing power. Purchasing power of currencies can be determined by comparing domestic prices expressed in national currencies for widely used goods or a basket of goods. The distinguishing feature is the possible standardization to ensure correct comparison. Comparing the price level for a specially formed basket of similar goods will facilitate to determine the cross rates of currencies more correctly, excluding the speculative component. The average cost of the basket will determine the value of digital international currency asset (DICA) and its exchange rate to national currencies. A pilot project of implementing a new mechanism of international settlements can be initiated by Russia within BRICS with a participation of countries wishing to join it.

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