Russian finance minister ties loans for Belarus with 'deeper integration'

The compensation for Russia’s oil tax maneuver or new loans may be given to Belarus when the two states work out a joint approach to integration, Russian Minister of Finance Anton Siluanov told journalists during the International Economic Forum in St Petersburg.  As of now, it is premature to make decisions about the compensation, according to the minister.

"The position we have informed Belarus about is: we need comprehensive decisions with regard to our further integration in line with the Treaty on the Union State.  Accordingly, it will be possible to understand the sphere of our financial relations,” Siluanov noted.

At the same time, 'Moscow is not setting any terms or making any suggestions' as regards the things that Minsk needs to do to get the compensation, kommersant.ru quotes the Minister as saying.

The merge of Russia and Belarus into one state is ‘out of question’, Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier at the economic forum in St Petersburg.