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Ukraine will receive €1.2 billion from France as macro-financial assistance aimed to stabilize the country’s economy.The decision was announced by Ukrainian President Zelensky fallowing talks with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron.
Zelensky thanked the French leader, claiming that it was an important step towards the sustainability of Ukraine’s economy.
“Economic support is very important, and we really appreciate such a step of solidarity with other states, a powerful step on the part of Emmanuel, on the part of France – the allocation of € 1.2 billion of macro-financial assistance to Ukraine,” – Zelensky claimed at a press conference.
French leader came to Kiev on February 8th after his visit to Moscow, where he held talks with Russian President Putin.
In Kiev, Macron concluded that Russia does not intend to initiate any escalation in Ukraine, stressing that diplomacy is the only way to resolve the ongoing crisis.
Following negotiations with Zelensky, Macron was also assured of Kiev’s commitment to compliance with the provisions of the Minsk agreements.
Political advisers to the leaders of the Normandy format will meet in Berlin on February 10. According to Macron, Germany and France intend to continue mediation efforts in relations between Russia and Ukraine.
France aims to achieve stabilization of the situation in Ukraine in the coming weeks.
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Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister Annallena Baerbock continued her tour in Ukraine. On February 8th, she visited Donbas front lines.
According to local reports, she stayed there for 40 minutes and made an evident conclusion. It turned out there was a war.
“Once a holiday resort, now a testimony to the fact that we have war in the middle of Europe,” Baerbock said.
The financial support to Ukraine is the main part of political path towards the stabilization. Kiev has been calling for help to the country’s economy, blaming the alleged Russian threat and inflaming the hysteria in the media. Now, Europe has to pay for peace. At the same time, the allocations increase the Western influence in Ukraine, probably with the tacit consent of Moscow.
The European investment plan provides for more than €6 billion. More than €17 billion in aid were allocated to Ukraine since 2014.
On January 24th, the European Union agreed to provide another €1.2 billion to Ukraine, which consisted of loans and grants. Unlike Macron’s recent decision, European Commission Head Ursula von der Leyen explained the assistance with the threat of Russian invasion.
In December, the World Bank approved a loan of € 300 million to support reforms for the economic development of Ukraine. The Ukrainian authorities were supposed to direct money to the notorious land reform, which facilitated the access to the Ukrainian land market for foreign buyers. As a result, Ukraine has faced a significant decline in domestic agricultural production and was forced to increase food imports from abroad.
