Russian President Vladimir Putin, center, poses for a picture with the national synchronized swimming team during an awards ceremony for Russia's Olympians in Moscow's Kremlin on Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Maxim Shemetov, Pool)
Spokesman: Putin says Cyprus plan unjust
Published: 09:55:14 AM, Mon 18 March 2013 UTC
MOSCOW (AP) — The spokesman for Vladimir Putin says the Russian president is strongly critical of a plan to levy a tax on depositors in Cyprus.
Russian companies have an estimated $19 billion in Cypriot bank accounts. Russians have for years seen Cyprus as an investor-friendly jurisdiction with lax banking regulations and low taxes.
A proposed bailout of Cyprus's economy would impose taxes on bank deposits of up to 9.9 percent.
Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the president criticized the plan in a meeting with economic advisers.
"Putin said such a decision, if taken, would be unjust, unprofessional and dangerous," Peskov said, according to Russian news agencies.
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