Ukraine secures US$5 billion in more funds after meetings, prime minister says

UKRAINE secured promises of US$5 billion in additional funding to support its ongoing fight against Russia amid “fruitful meetings” in Washington this week, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal told reporters on Friday (Apr 24).

Shmyhal met with representatives of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the European Investment Bank as well as top US officials, on the sidelines of the spring meetings of the IMF and the World Bank.

He said Ukraine received new pledges of additional support from Switzerland, Denmark and a number of other countries during the meetings, as well as an agreement from US aircraft maker Boeing Co to relieve Ukrainian companies of US$200 million in previous commitments. Kyiv expected to receive more support during an upcoming conference in London, he added.

“The international partners have reassured us of their long-term support,” Shmyhal said, describing his meetings in Washington, and referring to total financing of US$115 billion over the next four years that was leveraged by the IMF’s approval of a US$15.6 billion loan.

Ukraine needs about US$14 billion in funding this year to close a budget gap, Shmyhal said, noting that the United States aimed to provide US$2.3 billion while the European Union would provide 1 billion euros (S$1.5 billion) of that funding.

In addition to Switzerland and Denmark, he said Spain, Ireland, Japan, Latvia and Lithuania, Iceland and the Netherlands also promised more aid.

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Shmyhal said Ukrainian officials met with a number of US cabinet secretaries, including Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, with a big focus on laying the groundwork for Ukraine’s recovery and attracting foreign investment.

He said the discussions also touched on Ukraine’s insistence that the United States and other allies confiscate Russian assets to help cover the cost of rebuilding Ukraine - a sum put at US$411 billion by the World Bank in a recent estimate.

He urged the Group of Seven advanced economies to reaffirm their support for Ukraine and discuss the confiscation issue during an upcoming leaders summit in Japan, which is leading the G7 this year. REUTERS