Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The European Council has approved the second payment of over €4.2 billion under the Ukraine Facility to support its financial stability.
According to a press release of the European Council, Ukraine will soon welcome over €4.2 billion in funds after the EU Council approved the second regular payment of grants and loans under the EU’s Ukraine Facility, to help Ukraine’s macro-financial stability and the functioning of its public administration.
What reforms did Ukraine complete to receive the second payment?
In a decision assumed today on 9 Dec 2024, the EU Council figured that Ukraine had fulfilled the necessary conditions and reforms envisaged in the Ukraine Plan for obtaining the funds, which will be paid from the Ukraine Facility. The Council also emphasised the importance of allocating the money as soon as possible, given the challenging fiscal situation in Ukraine.
The Ukraine Plan outlines Ukraine’s intentions concerning the recovery, reconstruction and modernisation of the country and the reforms it intends to undertake as part of its EU accession process in the next four years. In May 2024 the EU Council concluded that the Ukraine Plan fulfilled the preconditions for Ukraine to receive up to €50 billion in support under the Ukraine Facility, and in August the first EU instalment was paid.
How does the Ukraine facility support the country’s long-term recovery?
The Ukraine Facility, which came into force on 1 March 2024, envisions up to €50 billion of stable financing, in donations and loans, to support Ukraine’s recovery, reconstruction, and modernisation for the duration of 2024 to 2027. Of this, up to €32 billion is indicatively committed to support reforms and investments set out in the Ukraine Plan, whereby disbursements will be prepared on the delivery of identified indicators.
Since it entered into force, the Ukraine Facility has already disbursed €6 billion by way of bridge financing, €1.89 billion in pre-financing, and a first instalment of nearly €4,2 billion, of which €1,5 billion in the form of non-repayable financial support and over €2,6 billion in the form of loans.