(17 Jul 1998) Russian/Nat
The lower house of the Russian parliament, the Duma, has gone into recess for the summer without agreeing an austerity package to secure 17 (b) billion U-S dollars in I-M-F loans.
Prime Minister Sergei Kiriyenko says the government will now act by decree to
introduce its austerity programme.
After three days of debate in a special sitting the lower house of parliament has failed to come up with the money it needs to satisfy the I-M-F loan conditions.
On Friday the Duma failed to pass a series of budget tightening measures that would have allowed the Yeltsin government to carry out an economic stabilization plan.
The I-M-F recently granted Russia more than 17 (b) billion U-S dollars to pull its economy out of a tailspin and avert an even more serious crisis.
But the I-M-F loan is tied to government restructuring and without Duma approval the Yeltsin government says it will now be forced to implement its own economic reform package.
Prime Minister Sergei Kiriyenko spoke at the Duma today in a last ditch effort to convince deputies to pass the plan.
He warned of even stricter reform policies, if the government has to go it alone, without help from international banks.
SOUNDBITE: (Russian)
"We are forced now to take even stricter more serious decisions to solve this financial crisis. The package which we proposed to Duma was the lightest variant of restructuring and now that they haven't passed it we will now have to take the next step, perhaps even firmer measures".
SUPER CAPTION: Sergei Kiriyenko, Russian Prime Minister
Friday's session was the last before a month long summer recess.
The inability of parliamentarians to pass a portion of the government packages now means the government will have a tougher time trying to reform the economy.
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