Medvedev blasts Kiev's new debt repayment law

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on Saturday slammed Ukraine for its move to impose a moratorium on state debt repayment, saying the decision by the Ukrainian parliament could be seen as grounds for demanding an early repayment of the debt.

"It looks like they have felt somewhat stressed about certain statements from Russia. They said they hadn't done anything yet ... but intentions are sometimes more important than actions themselves," Medvedev was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying.

The decision is enough for demanding that these debts be repaid early, he added.

The Ukrainian parliament on Tuesday approved a bill to grant the government a right to impose a moratorium on state debt repayment if a "need associated with difficult economic situation" arises.

The new legislation envisages that the Ukrainian government may temporarily suspend Kiev's payments to international private lenders until a compromise in their debt-restructuring talks is achieved.

Earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin criticized the move as "a poor level of professional responsibility" and "a de facto announcement of a looming default."

Russia is well within in its rights to demand early repayment of the debts given Ukraine's situation, but Moscow has so far refrained from using this right, he added.

Russia holds 3 billion U.S. dollars in Ukrainian Eurobond, whose full repayment is due by the end of the year.

Moscow, whose relations with Kiev have been deteriorating due to a year-long conflict in eastern Ukraine, has declined to join the debt restructuring talks. Endi