Commission pays a further €1.5 billion in assistance to Ukraine
PixabayToday, the Commission has paid the final instalment €1.5 billion under the Macro-financial Assistance + package for Ukraine, bringing total support to the maximum level of €18 billion, the largest macro-financial assistance operation in the history of the instrument. With this instrument, the EU helped Ukraine cover its immediate funding needs in 2023 by means of stable, predictable and sizeable financial support.
This support will help Ukraine to continue paying wages and pensions, and keep essential public services running, such as hospitals, schools, and housing for relocated people. It will also allow Ukraine to ensure macroeconomic stability and restore critical infrastructure destroyed by Russia in its war of aggression, such as energy infrastructure, water systems, transport networks, roads and bridges.
Today’s payment comes after the Commission found on 14 December that Ukraine has successfully implemented the agreed policy conditions and complied with reporting requirements, which aim to ensure the transparent and efficient use of the funds. Ukraine has notably achieved important progress to enhance macro-financial stability with the improvement of the bankruptcy and insolvency framework, as well as to strengthen the rule of law with for instance the strengthening of the independence of the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office. This complements other achievements under the MFA+ aiming at enhancing the effectiveness of legal institutions, such as the appointment of a head of the anti-corruption authority NABU and the improvement of the selection process for judges. Ukraine has also made significant advances towards improving its energy system with the improvement of the functioning of the gas system, and towards promoting a better business climate.
By completing this comprehensive reform agenda, Ukraine is demonstrating its desire and readiness to strengthen its economic foundations even under the most adverse circumstances. The successful implementation of the MFA+ clearly showcases European solidarity, which has provided a total of almost €85 billion in humanitarian, economic and military support to Ukraine and its people since the beginning of Russia’s war of aggression in February 2022.
President von der Leyen said: “Today we unlocked the final payment of €1.5 billion of macro-financial assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the year, bringing the total to €18 billion for the whole year. As Ukraine continues to face Russia´s brutal war of aggression, we need to continue supporting Ukraine to ensure its economic stability, to reform and to rebuild. This is why we are working hard to find an agreement on our proposal of €50 billion for Ukraine between next year until 2027.”
Overall, since the start of the war, EU support to Ukraine and Ukrainians amounts to almost €85 billion. This includes financial, humanitarian, emergency budget and military support to Ukraine from the EU, Member States and the European financial institutions, as well as resources made available to help Member States cater for needs of Ukrainians fleeing the war. More information is available in this factsheet.
On 20 June, the Commission proposed to set up a dedicated Facility providing coherent, predictable and flexible support to Ukraine for the period 2024-2027, for an overall amount of up to €50 billion.
