EU Council approves €4.2bn second tranche of aid to Kiev

The Council of the European Union (EU) has agreed to pay Kiev the second tranche of its €4.2 billion macro-financial aid, the body said in a statement on December 9. The payment will be made soon, it said.

"The Council approved the second regular payment of grants and loans under the EU Fund for Ukraine to support the country's macro-financial stability and the functioning of its public administration," reads the text of the document on the body's website.

It is noted that the positive decision was taken after Ukraine "fulfilled the necessary conditions and reforms" to receive funds from the EU Fund.

The Council emphasized that given the "difficult financial situation" in the country, it is important to allocate the money as soon as possible.

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Earlier, on December 4, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced the transfer of $50 billion from Russian assets to Kiev in the near future. On the same day, Ukraine signed a memorandum of understanding and a loan agreement with the European Union to attract €35 billion in aid to Kiev, which are part of the G7 countries' initiative for a mechanism of additional loans to increase revenues to Ukraine's budget.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmygal also reported on November 28 that the EU had signed a memorandum of understanding with Kiev for the first part of the €18.1bn loan with repayment from the proceeds of frozen Russian assets.

On December 8, the Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers published a decree on the terms of the loan for up to $20bn. According to it, the Ukrainian authorities will receive a 40-year loan from the Federal Financing Bank (FFB) from the proceeds of frozen Russian assets. The next day, Mikhail Belyaev, a financial analyst and candidate of economic sciences, said in a conversation with Izvestiya that Ukraine is already a de facto bankrupt country. He added that all countries realize that Kiev cannot cope with its state debt.

Commenting on the possible transfer of proceeds from immobilized Russian assets to Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitriy Peskov emphasized back in August that these steps were illegal and would have consequences.