BRUSSELS: European Union countries on Tuesday approved new aid for Ukraine as the country faces growing economic losses from Russiaof the invasion.
Finance ministers from 27 EU countries loaned the Ukrainian government 1 billion euros ($1 billion) on Tuesday.
This sum brings €2.2 billion in total EU macrofinancial support to Kyiv This year. The EU’s €1.2 billion initial loan package was green-lit by the bloc’s finance chiefs days before a full-scale Russian attack on February 24.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive body, in mid-May proposed additional assistance of up to 9 billion euros to Ukraine. The planned €1 billion outlay is part of the initiative, which comes as Russia advances in eastern Ukraine and casualties mount on both sides.
Zbynek Stanjura, Finance Minister of the Czech Republic, who currently holds the rotating Presidency of the EU, said: “This will provide Ukraine with the necessary funds to cover urgent needs and ensure operations. of critical infrastructure”.
Last week, Ukraine said its post-war reconstruction would cost $750 billion. Meanwhile, the Kyiv government estimates it needs around 5 billion euros a month to keep the economy afloat.
The group of seven countries, including the United States, have pledged to help Ukraine meet short-term financial requirements in addition to providing military aid to Kyiv and imposing wide-ranging economic sanctions on Russia. .
The five-month war is having major social and economic effects around the world, from possible food shortages in Africa to disruptions to energy supplies in the EU. These in turn increase the risk of a global recession.
The EU on Thursday is expected to lower its forecast for global economic growth in 2022 for the third time this year.
In May, the European Commission projected that the EU’s gross domestic product would grow by 2.7% in 2022, downgrading the forecast made in February to 4%. The February outlook itself was weaker than the November forecast for EU GDP growth of 4.3% this year.
Over the past two months, Russia has cut or reduced the supply of natural gas to more than 10 EU countries, and inflation in Europe continues to rise. In June, inflation in the 19 countries that use the common euro reached a record of 8.6%.
Finance ministers from 27 EU countries loaned the Ukrainian government 1 billion euros ($1 billion) on Tuesday.
This sum brings €2.2 billion in total EU macrofinancial support to Kyiv This year. The EU’s €1.2 billion initial loan package was green-lit by the bloc’s finance chiefs days before a full-scale Russian attack on February 24.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive body, in mid-May proposed additional assistance of up to 9 billion euros to Ukraine. The planned €1 billion outlay is part of the initiative, which comes as Russia advances in eastern Ukraine and casualties mount on both sides.
Zbynek Stanjura, Finance Minister of the Czech Republic, who currently holds the rotating Presidency of the EU, said: “This will provide Ukraine with the necessary funds to cover urgent needs and ensure operations. of critical infrastructure”.
Last week, Ukraine said its post-war reconstruction would cost $750 billion. Meanwhile, the Kyiv government estimates it needs around 5 billion euros a month to keep the economy afloat.
The group of seven countries, including the United States, have pledged to help Ukraine meet short-term financial requirements in addition to providing military aid to Kyiv and imposing wide-ranging economic sanctions on Russia. .
The five-month war is having major social and economic effects around the world, from possible food shortages in Africa to disruptions to energy supplies in the EU. These in turn increase the risk of a global recession.
The EU on Thursday is expected to lower its forecast for global economic growth in 2022 for the third time this year.
In May, the European Commission projected that the EU’s gross domestic product would grow by 2.7% in 2022, downgrading the forecast made in February to 4%. The February outlook itself was weaker than the November forecast for EU GDP growth of 4.3% this year.
Over the past two months, Russia has cut or reduced the supply of natural gas to more than 10 EU countries, and inflation in Europe continues to rise. In June, inflation in the 19 countries that use the common euro reached a record of 8.6%.
