MOSCOW, December 12. /TASS/. /TASS/. Ukraine has not yet handed over to Russia foreign property it owned when it was a Soviet republic, despite the fact that Russia has paid all external debts of the former Soviet Union, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview for a documentary entitled "Russia: Its Recent History" aired on the Rossiya-1 TV channel on Sunday.
"In the 1990s, Russia was unable to resolve socio-economic problems from financial support from outside. And Russia was deep in debt in the 1990s. First, in 1993 we undertook to repay the former Soviet Union’s debts - for all former Soviet republics," he recalled, adding that Russia hoped that the republics would hand over their Soviet-era foreign assents for that.
"Well, we have repaid their debts but not all of them implemented the liability hand over their foreign assets to us. For instance, Ukraine has not done it until now," Putin said.
He recalled that Russia asked other states to hand over those assets explaining that it had repaid the debts of the former Soviet Union but heard in response that it was its own problem to be settled with the former republics so that they stopped claiming these assets.
"Later on, Russia began to borrow money itself. It had to do it because it was unable to pay pensions and wages in time. Even monetary allowances to the military were not paid in time. That is why, it could not do without it back then," he admitted.