Belarus pleads for IMF bail-out

The announcement led both foreign ministers of Sweden and Poland, which champion the EU’s Eastern Partnership programme to bring ex-Soviet countries closer to the West, including Belarus, to engage in ‘Twitter diplomacy’ over the matter.

According to a statement released by authorities in Minsk, the government and National Bank of Belarus sent an application to the IMF on 31 May “for the extension of a stabilisation loan.”

The collapse of the rouble has seen the currency devalued by the National Bank of Belarus by 50 percent, leading to customers queuing to withdraw savings and panic buying.

Belarusian Prime Minister Mikhail Myasnikovich said that he expects aid to amount to between 3.5 to 8 billion US dollars over a period of three to five years.

While a team of experts is to discern which sum may be given to Belarus to save its economy, Poland’s Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski was quick to respond to the news by writing on his Twitter account.

“Lukashenkism has proved to be inefficient,” he wrote on Wednesday. “Let’s talk about a transition to democracy,” quips Sikorski, possibly hinting that western countries may be unwilling to loan Belarus the money if no political reforms are undertaken.

On his Twitter account, Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt echoes the words of Sikorski, writing in terser terms: “Belarus been forced to ask for IMF help. Collapse complete. But politics must change. Otherwise no help.”

The IMF application goes against comments made by authoritarian Belarusian President Aleksander Lukashenko, who denied last month that he would seek help from the West.

Belarus is currently awaiting a similar bail-out package from ex-Soviet countries. Over the next three years, Russia is ready to assign 3 billion US dollars from the Eurasian Economic Community fund, Russia’s Finance Minister Aleksei Kudrin has announced.

Minsk also hopes to raise another 3 billion US dollars as a result of privatisation of state property. (jb)

Source: PAP/AFP/pravda.ru