Russia buys USD 3 billion worth Ukrainian bonds

Russia has bought USD 3 billion worth of Ukrainian bonds in a bid to support its neighbor's economy, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said today.
Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has faced daily protests against his surprise decision last month to drop a landmark deal with the European Union. Last week, Yanukovych secured a deal with his counterpart Vladmir Putin whereby Russia slashes gas prices for Ukraine and buys USD 15 billion worth of Ukrainian government bonds.
The opposition says the agreements are a sell-out but Ukraine's Prime Minister Mykola Azarov said Russia's bond purchase has helped pull Ukraine from the financial abyss.

Medvedev met with Azarov in Moscow today and announced that Russia bought the first batch of bonds worth USD 3 billion yesterday. He did not indicate, however, when Russia was going to buy more Ukrainian debt.
Investors have criticized Russia's decision to buy Ukraine's junk-rated debt and pointed to the fact that the Russian government is legally prohibited from investing state funds into risky assets.