U.S. to Unveil Multibillion-Dollar Aid Package for Russia, Neighbors

The Bush Administration has decided to unveil a new multibillion-dollar package of aid for Russia and its neighbors next month, and President Bush, abandoning his low-profile stand on the issue, plans to campaign personally for its passage, officials said Thursday.

The new package, as drafted by the State Department, will include a long-planned $12-billion boost for the U.S. stake in the International Monetary Fund and a contribution of as much as $1 billion to help stabilize Russia’s currency, officials said.

One official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Administration plans to announce the aid package in mid-April, at the same time that Russia concludes negotiations over an economic reform plan with the IMF.

Officials said the package under discussion, which Secretary of State James A. Baker III delivered to the White House on Wednesday, includes these elements:

* A commitment to campaign for a $12-billion increase in U.S. deposits at the IMF to enable the fund to take a larger role in stabilizing the Russian, Ukrainian and other economies.

* A U.S. contribution “in the range of $1 billion” to an international fund of about $6 billion to stabilize the ruble, the currency used in most of the republics of the former Soviet Union. If the fund works as planned, none of the money would actually be paid out.

* $620 million in direct U.S. aid, most of it in the form of emergency food aid and “technical assistance,” including programs to help launch private enterprises and build a Western-style banking system.

* Additional loans and loan guarantees to enable republics to continue buying American grain.

* Abolishing several Cold War laws that limit trade, aid and other dealings with the ex-Soviet states.