(Reuters) – Ukraine, reliant on foreign aid since Russia’s invasion last year, hopes to receive 18 billion euros ($19 billion) of assistance from the European Union next year, the same amount it secured for 2023, officials said on Monday.
Kyiv has just received 1.5 billion euros ($1.59 billion) in a ninth tranche of financial assistance from the EU, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on the Telegram messaging app.
“EU budget support to Ukraine in 2023 already amounts to 15 billion euros – this is one of the most important factors helping Ukraine to be economically resilient and stable.”
Kyiv depends heavily on foreign financial aid after its economy shrank by about a third last year due to the war with Russia. Millions fled the war, towns and cities were bombed, logistics routes and supply chains disrupted, and the power sector and critical infrastructure damaged by air strikes.
Two more tranches of EU support are expected in the coming months, bringing the total amount this year to 18 billion euros, Kyiv’s finance ministry said.
The Ukrainian government has started working jointly with the EU on a new long-term programme worth a total of 50 billion euros spread over four years, Shmyhal said. The government hopes to get 18 billion euros from the facility next year, he said.
Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko told Reuters earlier this month that donor “tiredness” was growing as the war with Russia dragged on.
The government plans for a 2024 budget with an approximately $42 billion deficit and hopes to cover the shortfall with international financial aid.
($1 = 0.9423 euros)
(Reporting by Yuliia Dysa and Olena Harmash; editing by Tom Balmforth and Mark Heinrich)
