Dhaka, Sep 11 (V7N): Russia has once again rejected allegations of embezzlement related to the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) project, claiming that false information is being spread to damage the strong and beneficial relations between Moscow and Dhaka.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the Russian Embassy in Dhaka emphasized that despite two earlier press releases from Rosatom State Corporation refuting these claims, misleading information continues to circulate in Bangladesh's media.

“To dispel any further baseless speculation, it is necessary to explain the utilization of Russian export credits and the amount already spent on the Rooppur NPP’s construction,” the statement read.

As of September 3, 2024, around $7.8 billion out of the $11.9 billion allocated by Russia for the Rooppur NPP project has been utilized. This includes $491.3 million under a 2013 agreement and $7.3 billion from a 2016 agreement, the latter representing 64% of the total second credit of $11.38 billion. The period for utilizing this credit ends in December 2024.

The embassy further clarified that Russian export credits are strictly regulated by the Russian Federation, and funds are not directly transferred to the sovereign borrower. Instead, payments are made in Russian rubles to Russian exporting companies based on documents approved by the Ministry of Finance and VEB.RF (Vnesheconombank).

"We believe that those spreading false allegations of corruption are deliberately attempting to discredit this important project and undermine the strong relations between Moscow and Dhaka," the statement concluded.

These allegations, which surfaced after the resignation of Sheikh Hasina on August 5, were initially propagated by the little-known website Global Defense Corp, which accused the former Prime Minister and her family of embezzling over $5 billion in collusion with Russian officials by inflating project costs.

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