Washington, 30 October 1997 (RFE/RL) - Sources at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington say the decision yesterday by First Deputy Managing Director Stanley Fischer not to travel to Moscow will have no real impact on the fund's handling of the next scheduled drawing of Russia's three-year, $10 billion loan.
Fischer had tentatively been planning to join an IMF team currently in the Russian capital assessing the country's progress under the loan's reform program. But he told reporters that he had to drop the trip because he was too busy dealing with the currency situation in Asia.
The Associated Press wire service quoted an unnamed Russian official in Moscow as saying Fischer's cancellation would delay by a week the fund's consideration on releasing the next loan drawing, but IMF sources say that is not correct.
Fischer said that while Russia has made "a lot" of progress on the structural side of its reforms, the government is still having problems with revenue collections.