Azernews.Az

Ahead of Ukraine's 34th anniversary of independence on 24 August, the EU delivers another strong signal of unwavering support by disbursing €4.05 billion to the country, Azernews reports, citing Azertag.

According to the EU’s official website, this includes €3.05 billion via the Ukraine Facility and €1 billion through the European Commission's exceptional Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA).

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission said: “As Ukraine celebrates its 34th Independence Day, the EU sends a clear message: our solidarity with Ukraine is unwavering. Today's disbursement of over €4 billion demonstrates our staunch commitment. This new funding underlines our commitment not only to Ukraine's recovery, but to its future as a sovereign and democratic country. Because when Ukraine is strong, Europe is stronger too.”

The Commission has disbursed a fourth regular payment of over €3.05 billion under the Ukraine Facility. This funding will enhance Ukraine's macro-financial stability, strengthen its public administration, and drive critical long-term reforms.

With this latest disbursement, the total EU support to Ukraine under the Facility has reached €22.7 billion since its start on March 1, 2024. This represents nearly 60% of the funds available under the Ukraine Plan.

Following the payment request submitted by Ukraine, on 8 August the Council endorsed the Commission's assessment that Ukraine has satisfactorily fulfilled 13 reform indicators tied to this fourth regular quarterly payment. Key reforms accomplished for this payment concern public administration, management of public assets, human capital, green transition, regulation of the digital and agri-food sectors, and management of critical raw materials.

This fourth regular payment under the Facility demonstrates Ukraine's commitment to implementing the ambitious reforms agreed in the Ukraine Plan. Ukraine is set to receive up to €50 billion in grants and loans for the period 2024-2027 under the Ukraine Facility.

The disbursement comes in the context of Ukraine's continued progress on EU accession reforms, including the restoration of the independence of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office by the Verkhovna Rada on 31 July. Safeguarding the autonomy of these two institutions is a cornerstone of Ukraine's anti-corruption architecture and of its European path.

In addition, the European Commission has also disbursed the seventh tranche of its exceptional Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA) loan to Ukraine, worth €1 billion. With this payment, the Commission's total lending to Ukraine under this MFA reaches €9 billion since the start of the year and comes on top of the assistance provided via other support instruments.

In total, the MFA amounts to €18.1 billion and represents the EU's contribution to the G7-led Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) loans initiative, which collectively aims to provide approximately €45 billion in financial support to Ukraine to cover its urgent needs. The ERA loans from G7 partners, as well as the EU's MFA loan, are being repaid with proceeds from immobilised assets of the Russian Central Bank, held by central securities depositories in the EU via the Ukraine Loan Cooperation Mechanism.