Lukashenko says he and Putin reached an agreement on refinancing $1 billion of Belarus’ debt
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko (Alyaksandr Lukashenka) says that he and Russian President Vladimir Putin have reached an agreement on refinancing $1 billion of Belarus’ debt to Russia, reports RIA Novosti.
“We agreed with the president of Russia and today our prime minister is holding talks with [Russian Prime Minister] Mikhail Mishustin regarding the refinancing,” Lukashenko said (as quoted by the Belarusian state news agency BelTA).
Lukashenko claimed that the refinancing would take place this year. “That is, in agreement with Russia, we will keep this $1 billion here. And this will be a good reinforcement for our national currency,” Lukashenko said.
According to RIA Novosti, the Belarusian ruble has weakened against the backdrop of the ongoing protests in Belarus: its exchange rate against the dollar went up 8.17 percent between August 10 and August 27.
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