MOSCOW, APRIL 1, RIA NOVOSTI - Alexei Kudrin, federal Finance Minister, does not think Russia is in for any problems with next year's foreign debt payments.
The country coped with peak payments last year and, more than that, stocked up a target reserve thanks to balanced budget policies. To all appearances, next year will see no need to draw on the national strategic fund, and all payments will come as part of routine monetary policies-in particular, crediting and budgetary, he reassured Moscow Echo radio in a live cast this afternoon.
As the schedule has it, Russia is to pay close on US$19 billion on the debt and its servicing next year, as against this year's 17 billion. Nevertheless, the country is making steady economic progress, so the payments will make a smaller share of the gross domestic product and fiscal revenues than this year, said the minister.
