Russia trusts in the euro, in which it holds some of its international reserves, and thinks that the current weakening of the European currency is temporary, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday.
"We trust (the euro) and believe (in it). Ohterwise we would not have held so much of our funds, gold and forex reserves in the European currency,"
Putin told AFP and France 2 television channel ahead of his visit to Paris.
Putin acknowledged that there are some problems, but thinks that "on the whole, the European financial authorities are acting absolutely correctly."
"Discipline needs to be strengthened, budget deficits need to be watched...currency legislation needs partial changes. It should be the same, at least as far as possible for all European Union members. But on the whole, European economic fundamentals are solid," Putin said.
France and Germany were the most financially stable, he said.
"No one is interested in ruining the European Union. I think that (German Chancellor Angela) Merkel is right - if there is no euro, there is there is no European Union...and there are no objective reasons for a euro collapse. Yes, there are some difficulties. But I am sure that they are temporary."
MOSCOW, June 9 (RIA Novosti)
