LONDON, July 10. /TASS/. An increasing number of central banks worldwide are repatriating gold reserves as protection against freezing of their gold and forex reserves by the West as happened to Russia after the onset of its special military operation in Ukraine, Reuters reported Monday citing an Invesco survey of central bank and sovereign wealth funds viewed by the agency.

"If it's my gold then I want it in my country' (has) been the mantra we have seen in the last year or so," Invesco's head of official institutions Rod Ringrow was quoted as saying.

"We did have it (gold) held in London... but now we've transferred it back to own country to hold as a safe haven asset and to keep it safe," one central bank said. The annual survey showed that a "substantial share" of central banks were concerned by the precedent that had been set, with 68% of the 85 sovereign wealth funds and 57 central banks surveyed keeping reserves at home compared to 50% in 2020, the agency said.

Nearly 80% of respondents see geopolitical tensions as the biggest risk over the next decade, according to the survey. Central banks are "repatriating gold reserves as protection against the sort of sanctions imposed by the West on Russia," Reuters said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on February 24, 2022, that, in response to a request by the heads of the DPR and LPR for assistance, he had decided to carry out a special military operation in Ukraine. The West imposed sweeping sanctions against Russia after that. In particular, sanctions against the Bank of Russia were announced. Western countries totally froze around half of Russia’s gold and forex reserves estimated at around $640 bln, the agency said.