The Kremlin has asked for clarification after the words Poroshenko, a “bribe” Yanukovych – RBC

President’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov.

Photo: TASS

President’s press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, asked for clarification on the statements of the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, in which he called Russian loan of $ 3 billion “bribe” Viktor Yanukovych.

«We know that the President of Ukraine, while Yanukovych was ousted in a coup unconstitutional and illegal, and, of course, when we hear such statements in the first place, we expect clarification, refuse if the current Ukrainian authorities of succession in respect of the obligations of Ukraine, including international, of which we are primarily interested in financing, “- said Peskov.

« While we do not have the answer to this question and, frankly, I find it difficult to answer whether these statements answer “, – said the press secretary of the president of Russia. He explained that the question of the legitimacy of the current authorities in Ukraine is not put. “The issue is that when it comes to legitimate power in Ukraine, whether they contest the succession of Ukraine as a state,” – explained his position Sands.

Earlier, in an interview with Bloomberg Poroshenko described the Russian loan of $ 3 billion as a “bribe”, which his predecessor, Viktor Yanukovich received from Moscow for the rejection of European integration. “It was a bribe,” – Poroshenko said in an interview with Bloomberg television on June 15.

Currently, Ukraine is in difficult negotiations with creditors on restructuring the external debt owed to private creditors. According to Poroshenko, Russia, bought from the Yanukovych government Eurobonds for $ 3 billion, should stand in a number of other private creditors. Earlier, Poroshenko signed a law under which Ukraine may introduce a moratorium on the payment of foreign debts to private creditors. In this case, in the interpretation of the Ukrainian president, it will affect the debt to Russia.

However, Poroshenko did not specify what the status of the debt – interstate or commercial – has a loan from Russia. According to him, it “is still open to question».

Kiev regularly paid interest on the redeemed Russian Eurobonds next payment to be held June 20, 2015 – in the amount of $ 75 million. Securities and must be repaid in December 2015. Moscow has repeatedly stated that it is waiting for timely repayment of money and do not agree on restructuring, otherwise promising to appeal to the International Court of Justice.

Russia has agreed to provide financial assistance to Ukraine for $ 15 billion in December 2013, after Yanukovych She refused to sign the Association Agreement with the EU. The first tranche of $ 3 billion has been allocated through the purchase of notes due in December 2015. However, after the change of power in Ukraine, the allocation of money stopped.

Representatives of Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly hinted that in extreme cases can refuse to return Russia to $ 3 billion. The argument they put forward the argument that the loan was taken “a corrupt dictatorial regime “. In particular, in May, when adopting the law on granting the Ukrainian government the right to impose a moratorium on the payment of foreign debts, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, said: “The government has the right to direct funds that taxpayers pay in Ukraine, to the needs of its citizens, rather than on the return of credits, who took the kleptocratic regime of Yanukovych. ”