MOSCOW, April 3. /TASS/. Russia's public debt is at a low level and at the end of the year it can even be slightly below 17% of GDP, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov told reporters on the sidelines of the State Duma, the lower house of parliament.

"Indeed, our public debt is not high. Today the Prime Minister spoke about 17% of GDP. I think that, perhaps, by the end of the year it will be even a little lower. We are very careful about this indicator, since servicing costs are also rising amid the growth of interest rates," the minister said.

According to him, half of the public debt consists of loans on floating interest rates.

"The Finance Ministry always treats money and borrowings carefully, so the issue of the budget rule is fundamentally important for us," he stressed.