EU Commission announces first tranche to Ukraine under €50 billion program
Oliver Varhelyi, European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement (Getty Images)
The first tranche of the new €50 billion financial support fund for Ukraine is expected in early March. Further aid is conditional on the progress of reforms in Kyiv, according to European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi.
He says the EU's goal is the first half of March.
According to him, Ukraine needs the help, especially given what is happening in the United States. This way, the EU will get back on track and help Ukraine to cope with the financial difficulties.
Once this payment is made, work will move on to creating a more formalized "cash for reforms" plan agreed between Kyiv and Brussels, under which Ukraine will receive €50 billion in remaining quarterly installments.
Ukraine is a candidate country for EU membership, and the concept is to link the current financial assistance - which Kyiv says is necessary to keep the state functioning amid war - to the reform course required of potential members of the bloc, the FT notes.
Varhelyi says the EU's funding is not just aid. EU's funding is based on conditions and results. So, in essence, the EU now needs to see a credible plan, a reform plan from Ukraine. Everything is almost ready, he states.
Program for Ukraine
On February 1, during the summit, the leaders of the European Union approved the allocation of EUR 50 billion for Ukraine under the Ukraine Facility program for 2024-2027.
On February 5, the EU Council and the European Parliament reached a preliminary agreement on the creation of a new instrument to support Ukraine's recovery, reconstruction, and modernization, the Ukraine Facility.
The document will be approved by the European Parliament at its plenary session scheduled for February 26-29, 2024.
Ukraine expects to receive the first payment of €4.5 billion in March. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukraine wants to receive €18 billion in the program's first two years.
