Belarus in talks with Russia over $700mln loan

Negotiations between Minsk and Moscow are underway to reach an agreement on a $700-million loan for Belarus, Finance Minister Uladzimir Amaryn told Sovietskaya Belorussia newspaper.

"Under the agreements reached on the results of the summit between Belarus and Russian presidents on April 3, the governments are in the advanced stages of a deal to receive a loan worth $700 million from the Russian Federation to re-finance the external debt," the newspaper quoted the minister as saying. 

Alyaksandr Lukashenka and Vladimir Putin met on April 3 in St Petersburg. The leaders reached a principal agreement on refinancing Belarus' debt to Russia this year.