Poroshenko Signs Moratorium on Foreign Debt Repayment

© Sputnik / Sergei KirkachUkrainian national currency hryvnia
Ukrainian national currency hryvnia - Sputnik International
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Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has signed a law allowing Ukraine to impose a moratorium on repayment of its foreign debt until at least July 2016, a press release on Poroshenko's official website said Thursday.

Ukrainians walking past candles in the shape of the national emblem of Ukraine on Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine - Sputnik International
Russia to Sue Ukraine if Moratorium on Foreign Debt Repayments Adopted
KIEV (Sputnik) — The Ukrainian parliament approved the bill, which could affect repayment of the country's $3-billion debt to Russia on May 19.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier the bill de facto was an announcement of a default, casting a negative light on the professionalism of Ukraine's leadership.

Moreover, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said that Moscow would turn to an international court if the Ukrainian president signed a moratorium on the repayment of foreign debt.

A man stands next to an advertising placard showing British pounds, US dollars and Ukrainian hryvnia banknotes in the Ukrainian capital Kiev - Sputnik International
Kiev's Foreign Debt Repayment Moratorium De Facto Announces Default – Putin
Ukraine's total debt is estimated at about $50 billion, of which $30 billion are external and $17 billion internal debts, according to Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk.

Yatsenyuk said that the suspension of payments could only relate to private loans, but Ukraine considered its $3-billion debt to Russia also as a private one, a position Moscow totally disagreed with.

Kiev has received several aid packages from international financial institutions, including the IMF, which has pledged to transfer $17.5 billion to the country over the next four years, with the first $5-billion installment being received.

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