Ukraine says it received $1.5 billion in macro-financial aid from EU

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal has said that Ukraine received another 1.5-billion-euro ($1.6 billion) instalment of the European Union’s macro-financial assistance package.

It was the ninth such package out of a total of 18 billion euros ($19 billion) that the European Commission pledged in December 2022. The tranches have been distributed in instalments throughout the year, with the previous transfer occurring on September 22, The Kyiv Independent reports.

The European Commission has disbursed 15 billion euros ($15.9 billion) of the package to Ukraine so far in 2023.

The 18-billion-euro support package aims to assist Ukraine with paying for essential public services, maintaining macroeconomic stability, and restoring critical infrastructure destroyed by Russian attacks.

Shmyhal also said that Ukraine was in talks with the European Commission to secure a long-term aid package that included 50 billion euros ($53 billion) in support.

"The EU's financial support is one of the most important factors helping us to be economically strong," Shmyhal said on Twitter.

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the EU and its member states have provided Ukraine with almost 84 billion euros ($89 billion) as of October 16.