IMF calls on Ukraine to continue its attempts to reach an agreement with Russia on 'Yanukovych's loan'
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) urged Ukraine to continue its attempts to reach an agreement with Russia on the so-called "Yanukovych loan", which refers to Eurobonds that were sold to Russia in late 2013 shortly before the flight of President Viktor Yanukovych from Ukraine.
This was stated in a message sent out by the Fund after the completion of the third review of its program of cooperation with Ukraine.
"Ukraine’s international partners have provided substantial financial and technical support to the authorities’ efforts to strengthen the economy, and their continued assistance remains important for the success of the program. Good-faith efforts to resolve the remaining sovereign arrears must continue," said the IMF.
In 2015, Ukraine restructured 13 issues of Eurobonds for a total of $ 15 billion, making it possible for private creditors to write off 20% of the debt. However, Russia said that it is an official creditor, and therefore that Ukraine's proposal is unacceptable. Ukraine, in turn, rejected the possibility of repaying the debt without restructuring and introduced a moratorium on its payment. The International Monetary Fund has recognized this loan as a sovereign debt.
On January 1, 2016, Russia announced that Ukraine had not made a payment in the total amount of 3.075 billion US dollars, and thus entered a state of default. The Russian authorities turned to The Law Debenture Corporation plc., and began the procedures necessary to file a lawsuit with the English court.
On March 29, the High Court of London took a procedural decision in favor of Russia, but Ukraine will still file an appeal against it.