Drachma? Never Heard of That - Kremlin Denies Greek Money Printing Idea

Moscow denied reports about Alexis Tsipras asking Russia to help print drachmas.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras never addressed Russia with a request to provide Greece with financial assistance in order to print its own currency, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday.

“The president has already said, and the minister has said and we have repeatedly said on various levels that the Greek side and the Greek authorities did not approach Russia for help,” Peskov told journalists.

On Tuesday, Greek media reported that Tsipras had asked Russian President Vladimir Putin for $10 billion to facilitate the printing of drachmas, which was the national currency of Greece before the country joined the Eurozone.

Greece and Russia boosted bilateral cooperation after the Syriza party came to power in January 2015.

Earlier in July, Russian envoy to the European Union Vladimir Chizhov said that Moscow was ready to assist the cash-strapped country economically, including economic cooperation in privatizing the country’s infrastructure.

Athens' failure to reach an agreement with its international creditors on a new bailout program before the previous aid package expired on June 30 fueled speculation that the country might leave the Eurozone and return to the drachma.

On July 13, the leaders of the euro area reached an agreement on a new bailout package for Greece. After the deal was reached, Tsipras said that the idea of Grexit was off the table.