€50 billion Ukraine Facility payments to start in March — von der Leyen

President of the EU Commission Ursule von der Leyen. Photo: Ursula von der Leyen/X

As the European Parliament and the European Council agreed on the mechanism of providing Ukraine with €50 billion, the European Commission President revealed her opinion on the timeline.

Ursula von der Leyen shared the information on the X account.

“We will continue to deliver much-needed funding and predictability for our brave partner and aspiring member. We aim to start payments in March.” claimed von der Leyen.

On February 6, the Council and Parliament decided to set up “a single instrument, providing coherent, predictable and flexible support for the period 2024-2027 to Ukraine, adapted to the unprecedented challenges of supporting a country at war”.  

According to the EU Council plan, the total budget of €50 billion for the Ukraine Facility will be split between €33 billion in loans in €17 billion in grants.

“This is another important step toward approving the initiative. Within this financial instrument, Ukraine will receive EUR 50 billion over four years. The European Union once again proved that it is united in its steadfast support for Ukraine in the fight against Russian aggression,” Ukrainian Prime Minister Denya Shmyhal responded to the EU’s agreement.

Ukraine, in turn, must prepare  ‘Ukraine Plan’, to ensure the recovery, reconstruction and modernisation of the country and the reforms which are a vital part of its EU accession process. 

All 27 EU members unanimously agreed to support Ukraine via the Ukraine Facility program at a special meeting of the European Council on February 1, 2024.

Read also: G7 and EU may use frozen Russian assets as collateral for Ukraine aid – Bloomberg