Russia is ready to provide a loan of 500 million U.S. dollars to Moldova, said Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin here Monday when meeting visiting Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin.

The first portion of the loan, around 150 million dollars, will be disbursed in 1.5 to 2 months, the Russian government website quoted Putin as saying.

Voronin said Russia's move showed that the Moldovan-Russian relationship was built on a enduring and firm basis.

He also said that the loan would be injected into Moldova's investment projects, and his country would pay on time.

Russia has pledged loans to neighboring countries such as Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Mongolia since the beginning of this year.

Source: Xinhua