Viktar Ivashkevich: IMF does not have illusions as regards reforms in Belarus

International Monetary Fund will not provide a loan for Belarus because of the absence of economic reforms.

This is how a coordinator of the civic campaign European Belarus Viktar Ivashkevich commented for charter97.org on the Finance Minister Andrei Kharkavec’s statement about the start of economic reforms in the country.

“Recently the Belarusian ruler told how America helped him obtain a loan. Regarding this I will say that now the relations of the USA and Belarus are absolutely not like before for them to help Lukashenka’s regime. What concerns IMF, then its negative decision on the loan will largely not be due to the internal political problems, but rather the absence of at least a hint on market reforms”, - the politician is sure.

He noted that in 2008, when a loan was provided, there were illusions that the regime, while maintaining the authoritarian nature, would undertake reforms and liberate small and medium business.

“There was a hope that transformations in the economy will lead to political democratization. In simpler words – that money would defeat evil. But today there are no illusions that Lukashenka and his surrounding are capable of that. Nothing has actually changed ever since. The policy of the Belarusian dictator does not concern the modernization of economy and the shadow privatization, which they are now talking a lot about, cannot be perceived as an argument by IMF, since they require transparency in this process. And again, not from the point of view of some humanitarian idea, but from the position of the order that is established in WTO, where the open nature of finance and budget are compulsory. Due to the absence of economic reforms in Belarus no loans will be provided”, - Viktar Ivashkevich concluded.

We would remind that at the end of 2008 an IMF mission and the Belarusian government reached an agreement over an economic program of 15 months. In the framework of this program a stabilizing loan was provided to Belarus in the amount of about $2.5 billion.

In 2013 Belarus has to pay the debt to IMF (including the interest payments) of 1 billion and 57.4 million SDR (which accounts for $1.63 billion), which is the largest amount of yearly due payments in the framework of the stand-by loan of 2 billion 269.52 million SDR ($3.5 billion at the current rate), which Belarus received in January 2009 – April 2010.

Photo: Belsat