Putin invites France’s Renault to take greater stake in AVTOVAZ

"You can build up your package, even swap assets with the government of France," said Putin on the sidelines of the Technologies in Machine Building - 2010 forum on Wednesday.

"We are not pushing you anywhere, nor do we insist on anything," he added.

"We very much hope that Renault and we will go further and a new platform for five car models will materialize," Putin said. "You can have no doubts you will have support from the government of Russia."

Putin recalled that at the end of the last year and early this year there emerged problems in cooperation between Renault and AvtoVAZ. Renault took a share in AvtoVAZ when the market was high and it paid decent money, but then the market crashed."

"We gave 25 billion rubles to the company in the form of loans, without changing the capital structure and without demanding Renault make additional investment," he stressed.

"We have done so throughout the Russian economy," he said. "Unprecedented assistance was provided to the banking system. And we did not make any distinction between 'ours' and 'not ours'. Banks with foreign stakes also received assistance," the prime minister said, adding that "far from all countries treated our banks accordingly."

"But we have not gone hysterical about this business," said Putin; Kazinform cites Itar-Tass.