International Monetary Fund says Russian offer on Ukraine debt is positive step

Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said today Moscow hoped to reach a compromise with Ukraine over Kiev’s debt and that Russia had made an offer which it sees as a basis for settling the issue.

“In my opinion we made an unexpected offer to our partners”, he said. “We were asked to delay this payment to next year”.

Under the conditions of its debt restructuring, Ukraine is prevented from giving holdouts better terms than those agreed to by other bondholders. “We are ready not to receive any money this year, $1 bln next year, another $1 bln in 20187 and 2018”, Putin added.

Moscow argues that Ukraine’s $3 billion debt to Russian Federation, which comes due in December, is sovereign and not subject to restructuring talks with commercial lenders. “The details would now need to be discussed between the Russian authorities and the Ukrainian authorities”.

Putin unveiled the proposal at a press conference during a Group of 20 meeting in Antalya, Turkey on Monday focused on rebuilding ties to fight terrorism in the wake of the deadly attacks in Paris last week.

The President noted that the Russian partners in the International Monetary Fund suggested that Russia used debt restructuring, which was to be paid before the end of 2015. “I had a brief conversation with President Putin in which I pointed out that although Canada has shifted its approach on a broad range of multi-lateral and global issues, we remain committed to the fact that Russia’s interference in Ukraine must cease”, Trudeau told reporters.