Ukraine to receive $20 billion from US, repayable using frozen Russian assets: details

On December 6, the Cabinet of Ministers approved the terms of a loan from the US Federal Financing Bank to be repaid from frozen Russian assets. The agreement provides for a 40-year repayment period and an interest rate of 1.3% per annum plus the rate on US Treasury bills, according to Resolution No. 1388.

The loan amounts to $20 billion.

To receive the money, the Ministry of Finance will issue a Certificate of Indebtedness. The agreement will be guaranteed by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The money will come to Ukraine through a special financial intermediation fund (Facilitation of Resources to Invest in Strengthening Ukraine Financial Intermediary Fund) established by the World Bank in October 2024.

The loan will be repaid not from the state budget but from other sources, including the frozen assets of the Russian Federation. Only if Russia pays reparations may the state budget be required to repay the loan.

In June 2024, the leaders of the Group of Seven (the United States, Japan, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, and Canada) agreed to provide Ukraine with $50 billion using future revenues from the frozen assets of the Russian Federation.

The European Union is ready to provide most of the amount – up to 35 billion euros (but the amount may be less if the United States fulfills its promise to invest $20 billion), Canada has pledged 5 billion Canadian dollars ($3.6 billion), the United Kingdom – 2.26 billion pounds ($3 billion), and Japan – 471.9 billion yen ($3 billion).

Ukraine wants to "stretch out" the use of this money for at least three years, rather than use it all at once.