Russia Fully Repays Sino-Soviet Liabilities Debt

Russia has fully repaid the remaining arrears from a Soviet Union debt to China, the Russian Finance Ministry said on Monday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — In July 2005, Russia and China reached an agreement, under which Moscow would repay Beijing over 400 million Swiss francs (over $415 million), the greater part of which comprised Soviet external debt.

In late September, Russia's Vnesheconombank said it had fully repaid the Soviet debt to China, at the request of the Finance Ministry.

"In accordance with the intergovernmental agreement, part of Russia's debt to China in the amount of 50.16 million Swiss francs [$52 million] was repaid via deliveries of Russian industrial products, as well as the implementation of research and development in the field of medicine, the other part in cash," the Russian Finance Ministry said in a statement.

The payment was made on September 24, according to the ministry.

Last month, Russia's Deputy Finance Minister Maxim Oreshkin said that country's external debt was being phased out. He forecast that by October external debt would likely be reduced by some $50 billion, under current rapid repayment.