Posted on 10/08/2008 1:55:29 AM PDT by Leifur
Russia has granted Iceland a EUR 4 billion (USD 6 billion) loan, as Russia’s Ambassador to Iceland Victor I. Tatarintsev announced to Davíd Oddsson, chairman of Iceland’s Central Bank’s board of directors, this morning.
The loan will be to three or four years and the interest rates between 30 and 50 points above Libor rates, ruv.is reports.
The decision has been confirmed by Russia’s Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
According to ruv.is, Iceland’s Prime Minister Geir H. Haarde has been investigating the possibility of such a loan from Russia since mid-summer.
Experts from the Central Bank of Iceland and Iceland’s Prime Ministry will travel to Moscow shortly.
According to an announcement from the Central Bank, the loan from Russia will greatly strengthen Iceland’s foreign currency reserves and strengthen the basis of the Icelandic króna.
But tell me one thing, why should they do it? I mean we Icelanders have been THE most loyal ally of the US since our Independence (wich you guaranteed), but after you unexpectantly vacated your military bases here there has been a power vacuum here in the North Atlantic at the same time as the Russians are trying to ensure their hegemony over the Nordic circle and the North Pole.
Recently the US once again showed how insignificant they see us and how unreturned our affection for them is when they made a loan and foreign currency supply deal with all the other Nordic countries (we tend to do things together because of our smallness) Reserve banks, but not ours, resulting in deepening our calaminity.
But now the Russians seem to be saving us. But have you ever heard about them doing anything without wanting something instead (and then I am not just talking about the money back with interests). Remember there es an empty military base here ready for use. I really hope it doesn´t come to that though. Best wishes,
Leifur
Good luck. Sad to see what’s happening to Iceland. Not sure what the USA could do to help - we’re pretty much flat broke ourselves.
Sorry for not answering your pings yet, I just saw them now.
I must admit I am afraid of the Russian bear, it has shown itself to be a dangerous protector. I just don´t understand why the Americans exclude us from that kind of deal, I mean we have been much more loyal ally than the freaking socialdemocrats in Scandinavia. Do Americans really wan´t risking having Iceland under the influence of the Russians?
A loan to a state at 50 points above LIBOR? Wow!
Well, we ain´t broke, we have good savings in our fully funded pension system f.e., we just need foreign currency, we can pay our loans that is for sure as our government is virtually dept free.
And you have made a deal ensuring a supply of dollars to our brothers in Scandinavia but even though we wanted to be part of that deal like virtually everytime there is something done in Nordic cooperation, you guys exluded us.
And I mean, it is not as we are anywhere close to be the biggest bite to swallow, and you probably have much more economic interests here than in the socialdemocracies in the other Nordic countries.
jesus thats not a loan, that loan sharking...50 points above the london bank rate..holy crap!
Yeah, I know, there is something underlying that we don´t know yeat. Maybe in a few years the russians will have put a military base here wich makes it possible for them to take control over the whole North Atlantic. Let´s surely hope not, but it seems to me we Icelanders are pretty desperate when the US, wich we have always looked up to as our big brother no longer has any concern over weather the bully´s in the neigbourhood are bullying us.
So here the discussion was, before this happened that we would need to join a gang (a socialdemocratic centrally controlled gang of anti-american political grouping called the EU), as you abandoned us.
Operation: Polar Glory
I also feel that if Jeremiah Wright had his way, he'd put all of our families on cattle cars and send them to a concentration camp. And ObaHamas sat in that "church" for over twenty years and listened to that racist, anti-American, anti-semitic bilge.
Well if Obama wins it is pretty likely that you will finally descend into a socialdemocratic hell hole where free thought is suppressed by Political Correctness, most of your opinions branded and prosucuted as hate speech or worse. Iceland has been a free market experiment and pretty succesful at that, but I am afraid we could become part of the insanity of the EU, and then I ask, will true freedom have a stand in the world?
Want Warren Buffet’s phone number?
Taking a loan from Russia is like taking a loan from the devil.
I know, but when nobody is willing to loan us and we really, really need foreign currency to continue to run our country, selling your soal to the devil becomes acceptable. Especially when the good guys (as in Americans) seem either not to want us or which is maybe worse so indifferent that they don´t even notice us any more.
Global 2010
Could the powerful govts be playing a shell money game with all the bailouts/rescues/loans what ever the heck ya wanna call it.
Wonder how much money the Ruskies have loaned to Venezula.
Global reconstruction aye?
No.
The best patriots of America are gone and the generations that have come after mine (2 generations).
Care more about building their homes/foundations on sand.
Not upon the solid rock.
Asian markets have taken a plunge.
Nikkei drops 9%.
I wish I could answer your question, but I cannot. Then again, I never understood the US walking away from Keflavik AFB when Iceland was even offering to pay part of the operating costs and to move toward full support. Yes, Iceland has been a good friend of the US and a democratic, western oriented, NATO ally and the US simply turned away. I wish I could attribute it to the leftist moles in the State Department, but that doesn't seem an adequate explanation.
I just saw a headline that Sweden gave a loan to Iceland.
I doubt Russia is “saving you”. It is more like a mob boss owning you I’m sorry to say.
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