Countries' debts to Russia

Main article: Russian economy

2022

Other countries' debts to Russia rose to their highest since 1999

In 2022, the volume of loans issued by Russia to other countries amounted to $28.86 billion, which was a record figure since 1999, when the debt was at the level of $32.8 billion. This is evidenced by data from the World Bank (WB), published in December 2023.

According to RIA Novosti, citing materials from the WB, by the end of 2022, 37 countries had debts to Russia. Belarus remained the main debtor, but its debts to the Russian Federation in 2022 decreased by 3%, to $8.2 billion.

Deputy Kiryanov called the unprincipled amount of debt of other countries to Russia

Bangladesh is in second place, whose debt has grown by a third, to $5.9 billion. In third place was India, whose debt increased by 12.5%, amounting to $3.8 billion.

Egypt is in fourth place on the list of countries with the largest debts to Russia. In 2022, debt was measured at $1.8 billion, which is 1.9 times more than a year earlier. Vietnam took the fifth line ($1.4 billion against $1.5 billion in 2021).

Turkey has become the leader in terms of debt growth to the Russian Federation - in 2022 it grew 2.1 times. But in absolute terms, the amount of debt turned out to be small ($50 million).

The total amount of debt of other countries to Russia, the growth of which was noted in 2022, is not fundamental for the Russian budget, said State Duma deputy, deputy chairman of the economic policy committee Artem Kiryanov. In his opinion, in this case we are talking about "a fairly realistic financial and political approach to Russia's international relations."

In this case, we demonstrate the opportunity for our partners to interact, including on credit lines. I think that, taking on the functions in international politics - and today this is a very serious story for Russia - of course, it is necessary to take on the formats of support for countries that can be objectively useful to us in the international arena, in international organizations, including in the UN format, - the parliamentarian commented.[1]

Foreign borrowers paid 33.8 billion rubles on debts. This is only 24.4% of the plan

Foreign borrowers - states and legal entities - in 2022 paid Russia 33.8 billion in debts. rubles This is only 24.4% of the plan (138.5 billion rubles). This was reported on June 21, 2023 by the publication with RBC reference to the government materials to the bill on budget execution in 2022.

It is noted that the amounts against the principal debt have become minimal since 2012, when 25.3 billion rubles were allocated for interstate loans. In 2021, debts were paid in the amount of 114 billion rubles, in 2020 - by 117 billion rubles.

Economics economist Bloomberg for Russia and Central and Eastern Alexander To Europe Isakov explained the reduction in payments to the main debt on interstate loans as direct and indirect effects of sanctions. According to him, some of the debtors to companies from the sanctions lists could ask for a delay due to the risks of secondary sanctions in the event of payments to sub-sanctions enterprises. Some of the delays and postponements may be associated with a deterioration in the situation of Russian borrowers, for example, Belarus due to shocks power and food prices.

According to the report, at the end of 2022, Russia received 14.5 billion rubles under intergovernmental agreements on the provision of state export loans (as payment for goods, works, services), another 14.1 billion rubles - under agreements on the provision of state financial loans to foreign borrowers. 4.6 billion rubles fell on income from the sale at auction to Russian legal entities of debt funds India in Indian rupees and Vietnam in dollars USA according to the calculations from. Vietnam

The effect of sanctions is primarily expressed in a violation of the payment infrastructure, which makes it difficult to service debts to Russia, says Sofya Donets, economist for Russia and the CIS at Renaissance Capital Investment Company. However, from the experience of last year it is clear that these problems are solvable.

Russia has not already provided large funds to those states that are now considered unfriendly. Therefore, difficulties in the field of payment infrastructure and payment opportunities are a temporary story, which does not mean that debtors want to break off financial relations with Russia, she states.[2]

Russia's income from debts of other countries decreased by 4 times

At the end of 2022, Russia received 11.14 billion rubles in payments on debts of other countries instead of planned income on bilateral state loans of 48.7 billion rubles. This is stated in the materials published in March 2023 on the implementation of the action plan of the Ministry of Finance for the implementation of strategic planning documents for 2022.

As RBC writes with reference to this document, in 2021, interest on state loans provided by Russia to foreign governments and their legal entities amounted to just over 52 billion rubles, in 2020 - more than 64 billion rubles.

Due to sanctions, Russia received four times less in debt of other countries

The document of the Ministry of Finance notes that some foreign borrowers did not fulfill the planned transfers due to sanctions. After the start of the Russian military operation in Ukraine, the US Department of Finance banned operations with the Central Bank, the Ministry of Finance and the Russian National Welfare Fund.

For 2023, the government in the Budget Code secured the right to use the mechanism for assigning the rights of claims on debt obligations. The assignment of claims (in fact, their sale) can be implemented in favor of legal entities operating in the debtor country and not subject to sanctions. The authorities will be able to quickly make the decisions necessary to ensure the receipt of foreign debt to Russia in the federal budget. According to Oleg Buklemishev, director of the Center for Economic Policy Research of the Faculty of Economics of Moscow State University, the collection of public debts requires political efforts, and Russia in the current conditions "does not exert political pressure on" friendly "countries."

Assessing the possible mechanism for the concession of debt claims, Buklemishev admits that the conditions of loan agreements that directly prohibit such actions may become an obstacle to its implementation. However, he considers the scheme itself viable.^[3]

2021: Russia increased by 50% the issuance of loans to other countries

At the end of 2021, the issuance of intergovernmental export loans by Russia reached 318 billion rubles, which is 100 billion rubles, or 50%, more than in the previous year. This is evidenced by data from the Federal Treasury.

As Vedomosti writes with reference to the statistics published by the department, in 2021 in dollars Russia credited other countries for $4.3 billion (at the average Central Bank rate for 2021 of 73.7 rubles/$). A higher figure was recorded 10 years ago - in 2012, Russia issued loans in the amount of $4.7 billion (at the rate of 31 rubles/$).

At the end of 2021, the issuance of intergovernmental export loans by Russia reached 318 billion rubles

The publication notes that in ruble terms, Russia in 2021 issued a record volume of intergovernmental export loans, before the amount of such loans for the year rarely exceeded 200 billion rubles.

According to the budget law, in 2021 it was planned to provide financial and export state loans for 355 billion rubles. Borrower countries in 2021 returned debts to the Russian Federation in the amount of 205 billion rubles. Traditionally, the amount of loans issued by Russia exceeds the return. The exception over the past decade was only 2019, when foreign governments returned more loans than they received - this situation arose for the first time since 2010. According to the Federal Treasury, borrowers paid 250 billion rubles to the Russian Federation in 2019, while 215 billion rubles were lent.

The issuance of intergovernmental loans to other states is a normal practice that stimulates the Russian economy, State Duma deputy Airat Farrakhov told Izvestia. According to him, as a rule, funding is provided for the purchase of Russian equipment or services - for example, for the joint construction of nuclear power plants. In general, he supports intergovernmental lending from the Russian budget, since this is an effective instrument of competition in foreign markets.^[4]

2020: The countries that owe Russia the most are named

The sovereign debt of developing countries to Russia at the end of 2020 amounted to $27.3 billion against $25.2 billion a year earlier. The portfolio of interstate loans in comparison with these periods increased by 8%, or $2.1 billion. This is evidenced by the data of the World Bank, released in January 2022.

The largest debtor at the end of 2020 was Belarus with obligations of $8.3 billion. They follow,,, and Bangladesh Venezuela. India with Vietnam Ukraine a debt of $600 million ranks ninth.

Sovereign debt of developing countries to Russia amounted to $27.3 billion at the end of 2020

Most of all in 2020, Vietnam (by 10% to $1.5 billion) and Somalia (by 19% to $755 million) reduced their obligations. Russia ranks fifth among the largest sovereign creditors of developing countries (the first among China).

Debts to Russia significantly increased in two states: India (+ 74%, almost up to $3 billion) and Bangladesh (+ 37%, up to $3.3 billion). In both countries, Rosatom is implementing projects for the construction of nuclear power plants using inter-state loans.

According to a Vedomosti source, in the field of military-technical cooperation, the increase in debt between India and Bangladesh is obviously associated with an increase in the volume of work on the construction of nuclear power plants in these countries, since India is not supplied with weapons on loan, and arms supplies on loan to Bangladesh are mainly completed.

The Ministry of Finance of Russia does not disclose information on intergovernmental loans - borrower countries, as well as loan goals, are classified in most cases; nevertheless, sometimes such deals are announced publicly. The publication notes that, according to official data, interstate loans are usually provided to foreign borrowers for the purchase of Russian products, primarily defense, or for the payment of services for the construction of nuclear power plants.^[5]

2019: Countries with biggest debts to Russia

In March 2021, the World Bank (WB) published a report on bilateral debt of developing countries to other states, including Russia.

According to the WB, by the end of 2019, about 30 developing countries owed Russia almost $22.9 billion in bilateral loans. We are talking about both the debts of states and the debts of legal entities guaranteed by states.

The largest debtor of the Russian Federation at the end of 2019 was Belarus ($8.1 billion). Then go,,,, and Bangladesh Venezuela. Vietnam Yemen India Each of these countries owes Russia more than $1 billion. Some of these debts have remained since the early 1990s.

The debt of African countries (not counting Egypt) to Russia amounted to $973 million at the end of 2019. These are Somalia ($418 million), as well as Mozambique, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Zambia, Sudan and Tanzania. Basically, these countries took loans from the USSR, but there are also new Russian loans - from Zambia and Mozambique, the statistics of the World Bank said.

In general Russia , it ranks fifth among the largest countries - creditors of developing countries. The leader here is, which provided China funds in the amount of $149 billion. He is followed, and Japan. Germany France

The Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation, which is responsible for loans to other countries, does not publish information about Russian debtors: every year the government loan program is described in secret appendices to the federal budget, RBC notes.

Since the 1990s, Russia has restructured some of the Soviet debts to countries such as Vietnam, Yemen, Cuba, India. After the collapse of the USSR, the Russian Federation entered into agreements with 11 former Soviet republics to assume responsibility for paying off the external debt of the Soviet Union in exchange for all former assets of the USSR abroad, including the right to claim external debts.^[6]

To whom and what debts Russia forgave for August 2019

Among the countries of the G8, by 2019 Russia had become the leader in the number of debt written off.

The biggest debtors are:

• Cuba ($31.7 billion). In 2014, the Russian government wrote off 90% of the debt of 35.2 billion. dollars

• Iraq ($21.5 billion) Russia wrote off debts to this country twice - in 2004 $9.5 billion out of $10.5 billion and in 2008 $12 billion out of $12.9 billion. The second write-off was made on the new debt of modern Russia, in the hope that the interests of Russian companies in Iraq will be taken into account.

2017: Debt of countries to the Russian Federation $27 billion

In total, as of September 2019, 17 countries of the world are debtors of Russia with a total debt of almost $27 billion.

The largest debtors of Russia for September 2019

In first place is Belarus with 7.6 billion dollars, Ukraine and Venezuela with 3.7 and 3.5 billion, Cuba 3.2, as well as Bangladesh 2 billion.

According to the Federal Treasury for budget execution, borrowers paid 250 billion rubles in 2019, while Moscow borrowed 215 billion rubles. The last time a positive difference was noted in 2010, when Russia was returned 53 billion rubles, and it provided 14 billion rubles in debt. In addition, in 2019, the amount of repaid debts became a record for a decade. The previous record was noted in 2018, then 133 billion rubles were returned to the budget.

Since 2010, Russia has issued loans to other countries worth 1.3 trillion rubles, of which it has returned 800 billion rubles.

As Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Storchak explained at the beginning of 2020, the increase in repayments is due to the onset of payment deadlines for five to six states. In total, other countries owe Russia about $35 billion. At the same time, Belarus is the largest debtor. Experts believe that the reason for the return of debts was the tightening of requirements for borrowers, as well as the aggravation of the geopolitical situation.

See also

• Russia's debt

Notes