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Talks on Russia granting loan to Cyprus go on

Late last year Russia granted to Cyprus 2.5 billion euro for a term of four and a half years at 4.5 percent interest
Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS
Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS

MOSCOW, September 4 (Itar-Tass) —— The talks on the possibility of Russia granting a loan to Cyprus go on, a source in the press service of the Finance Ministry of the Russian Federation told ltar-Tass.

“The talks on the matter go on. There has yet been no endorsement of the granting of the loan to Cyprus,” said the source.

As Itar-Tass reported earlier, the Cyprus authorities do not yet confirm reports of the mass media about Russia’s decision to grant the loan of 5 billion euro to Cyprus. For instance, Cyprus Finance Minister Vasos Sharly told reporters that he knows nothing about the developments regarding Cyprus’ request to Russia that was officially made in August.

The newspaper Politis reported that the Russian authorities decided a few days ago to grant the request of the republic that landed in a severe crisis because of the debts of Greece with which Cyprus banks are closely connected. This compelled the Cyprus government to turn to partners in the European Union for help in late June. It also asked financial assistance of Russia and China. The negotiations with the Troika (the European Central Bank, the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund) are not yet over. The memorandum with the creditors is expected to be signed in the second half of September. Meanwhile Sharly said that the request for a loan to Russia is no obstacle to the talks with the Troika. The newspaper Politis reported that the Russian loan would be granted to Nicosia in consultations with the International Monetary Fund.

Late last year Russia granted to Cyprus 2.5 billion euro for a term of four and a half years at 4.5 percent interest to cover the financial needs of the republic’s government in the current year. According to some estimates, Cyprus will need from 10 to 15 billion euro to cope with its economic problems.