Ukraine to receive 3.2 bln euros in budget aid from EU
The EU is set to disburse 3.2 billion euros ($3.7 billion) in budgetary aid to Ukraine next month, the first such payment under a giant loan approved in April, Brussels said on May 20.The bloc’s economy chief, Valdis Dombrovskis, said the move came as Brussels and Kiev agreed on the underlying conditions for the macro-financial assistance (MFA) component of the broader 90-billion-euro loan.“We will proceed with a first MFA instalment around mid-June: 3.2 billion euros,” Dombrovskis told reporters, adding that it was conditional on Ukraine swiftly ratifying the related deal.The European Union signed off in April on the massive loan needed to plug a budget shortfall in Ukraine, after months of wrangling with Hungary, which had vetoed it.The scheme allows Ukraine to spend about 60 billion euros on weapons to fight Russia’s invasion.The remainder is to support Ukraine’s reconstruction and help the government operate as it faces a balance of payments crisis caused by the war, the MFA part.Dombrovskis told a group of journalists that the latter money was tied to Ukraine carrying out reforms aimed at improving public spending efficiency, and aligning tax avoidance rules with EU standards, among others.The EU expects the huge loan to cover about two-thirds of Ukraine’s total financing needs for this year and next.Under the loan deal Kiev would only pay back the money once the Kremlin compensates it for the destruction it has wrought.
