Putin: Russia may grant credits to Greece for joint projects

MOSCOW, Apr 8 (PRIME) -- Greece did not ask Russia for any financial help, but Moscow may grant credits to Athens for implementation of joint projects, President Vladimir Putin said in a joint news conference with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Wednesday after their meeting.

“The issue is not about a help, but about cooperation, including cooperation in the financial sphere in connection with some large projects,” Putin said. “The Greek side did not request any financial help.”

During the implementation of various projects, including in the energy sphere, Russia and Greece may solve issues of their credit relations, he said.

“If we are implementing a large project which gives Greece a profit, some of this income may be used to redeem those credits which we mentioned today.”

All Greece’s creditors are interested in expansion of cooperation between Athens and Moscow, as if the Greek economy strengthens, then the country may achieve a possibility of timely redemption of its debts, he added.

Russian companies are interested in participating in privatization of Greece’s industrial and infrastructural facilities if privatization terms are not worse than those for other companies, Putin said.

“If the Greek side…is ready to hold privatization processes in its economy, we are ready to participate in them and hope that Russian companies will not be set in worse conditions that other participants of the process.”

Russian firms are interested in investing in Greece, including in ports, airports and pipeline systems, he added.

Currently, state-owned monopoly Russian Railways is participating in a tender for privatization of Greece’s railroads and a port in the country’s city of Thessaloniki.

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