According to von der Leyen, the first tranche of 3.2 billion euros represents macro-financial support for Ukraine. “And in the coming days, we will start paying out the first money from six billion euros, which is intended for the production of drones,” said the head of the EC in a live broadcast.
The granting of the loan was approved this year by the presidents and prime ministers of EU member states after they failed to agree on financing that would use frozen Russian assets at last December’s summit. Originally, the entire EU was supposed to guarantee the loan, but the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary announced that they would not participate in the guarantees.
The EU loan will help Ukraine solve its urgent financial needs at a time when it has been facing a Russian invasion for more than four years. Two thirds of the funds are to cover Ukraine’s defense and military expenses, and the remaining third the Ukrainian budget so that the country can advance in reforms and progress in modernization. 45 billion euros are expected to be provided this year, the second half of the loan is planned for next year.
A two-day conference dedicated to the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine began in the morning in Gdańsk in the north of Poland. It should become the largest event of this type, wrote the Interfax-Ukraine agency.
Dozens of heads of state and heads of government are expected to attend. The Czech Republic is represented by Prime Minister Andrej Babiš and Minister for Regional Development Zuzana Mrázová.
Due to the current rift between Warsaw and Kyiv, the Ukrainian delegation is headed by Prime Minister Julija Svyrydenková instead of President Volodymyr Zelensky. She said in her opening speech that Kyiv expects to sign more than 160 agreements worth over ten billion euros during the conference.
