Belarusian regime ask 2 billion more from IMF

A few days ago the government and the National Bank of Belarus (NBB) addressed the International Monetary Fund’s Board of Directors with a request to grant a reserve credit of $2 billion.

The head of the information directorate of the National Bank of Belarus Anatol Drazdou confirmed to Interfax the fact of addressing to the IMF for a stabilization credit of $2 billion.

“There is nothing strange that in the situation when the financial crisis has seriously affected the economies of the neighbouring countries, the National bank of Belarus takes preventive steps to create a safety cushion for guarantee uniterrupted work of the economy and maintaining the tempo of its development,” Anatol Drazdou said.

As said by him, the NBB also considered a possibility of loans procurement from central banks and commercial banks of other countries. “The aim of the loans is the same – to create a safety cushion,” the NBB representative underlined.

As we have informed, on Tuesday the Vice Prime Minister, Finance Minister of Russia Alexei Kudrin informed about the decision to grant Belarus a stabilization loan of the Russian government for $2 billion in two tranches of $1 in 2008 and 2009.

In December 2007 Russian government gave Belarus a stabilization loan of $1.5 billion.

By the way, in the beginning of 2004 Belarus stated that it refuses to carry out further talks with the IMF on granting reserve loans.