State Duma of Russia Approves Documents on Delay of Belarus' Payments for Russian State Loans

On March 4, the State Duma of Russia approved two Belarusian-Russian documents concerning the modification of the terms of several previously concluded agreements, as reported by BELTA.

These documents pertain to the delay of payments by Belarus on Russian state loans.

The first document is an agreement between the governments of Belarus and Russia on changing the terms of certain intergovernmental agreements, signed in Moscow on April 25, 2024. The second document is a protocol, signed in Moscow on July 11, 2024, which makes amendments to the agreement from April 25, 2024.

"In order to reduce the payment burden on the budget of the Republic of Belarus concerning the repayment and servicing of debt obligations to the Russian Federation, agreements and a protocol were signed with partners in 2024. The agreements and protocol were signed according to the directive of the President of the Russian Federation in response to a request from the President of the Republic of Belarus," stated Vladimir Kolychev, Deputy Minister of Finance of Russia, while presenting the documents for ratification.

"The agreements provide for the postponement of principal repayments from April 1, 2024, to December 31, 2024, and interest payments from July 1 to December 31, 2024, to the period from 2031 to 2036. The total amount of payments to be postponed is approximately $800 million equivalent," he clarified.

"The agreement stipulates changes to the conditions of Russian-Belarusian intergovernmental agreements, under which the government of the Russian Federation has provided state loans to the government of the Republic of Belarus. The provisions of the agreement and the protocol are confidential," added Artem Turov, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration, and Relations with Compatriots.