EU's von der Leyen announces 35 bln euro loan in Kyiv visit
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission during her visit to Kyiv last Friday, announced a loan for Ukraine up to 39 billion dollars ($35 billion), saying that it was necessary to protect the country from Russian attacks and to help it survive the winter.
Zelenskiy, standing next to her, said that the loan will be used for energy procurement, air defences, and arms procurement. He urged his allies, at the press conference, to approve a "victory strategy" he had drafted by the end the year.
Von der Leyen, who was visiting Kyiv to begin her second term as the head of the executive branch of the European Union, said that Ukraine needs the continued support of the 27-nation group in the face Russian attacks.
The loan is part of an overall plan by countries of the Group of Seven Industrialised Powers to raise money using proceeds of Russian assets that were frozen as a sanction against Moscow for its invasion of its neighbor.
Zelenskiy, in front of Ukrainian and EU flags, said: "We'll spend this money, 35 billion dollars, primarily on defense, energy and bomb shelters for school children, nursery and university students. This is a huge deficit for us."
"And weapons, mostly those made in the United States, drones and missiles." Our long-range drones are more affordable than our partners and can strike at the enemy.
G7 frozen around $300 billion in Russian financial assets shortly after Moscow's full scale invasion of Ukraine 2022. The G7 pledged to use these funds to aid their ally but spent months discussing the exact mechanism that would be used.
Von der Leyen stated that "Russia continues to target your civilian energy infrastructure, in an obscene and vicious manner, to try and plunge the country into darkness." "I'm here to tell... that the European Union will help you to keep the light on."
She announced on Thursday that 160 million Euros from frozen Russian assets will be used to cover Ukraine's urgent needs this winter.
Von der Leyen stated that Russia destroyed about 9 gigawatts of Ukraine's power infrastructure. This is the equivalent of three Baltic States.
She stated that the EU would restore 2.5 GW in power generation capacity and increase exports so as to provide 2 GW electricity to Ukraine.
VICTORY PLAN
Zelenskiy said that when he meets with U.S. president Joe Biden, he will discuss his plan of victory.
Biden is responsible for the majority of decisions in the plan. Other allies are also important, but certain points depend on the support and goodwill of the United States," said Biden.
Zelenskiy provided regular updates about the plan's development, but gave few clues as to its contents. He only indicated that the goal was to come up with terms acceptable to Kyiv.
The entire plan depends on quick decisions by our partners. He said that the plan relies on decisions made between October and December.
Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, says that peace talks will only begin if Kyiv gives up large swathes in eastern and southern Ukraine and abandons its NATO ambitions. Zelenskiy repeatedly called for the withdrawal of all Russian forces and the restoration to Ukraine of its post-Soviet border.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said that the EU has "lost their mind" by providing additional military aid to Ukraine.
According to a letter from the Finance Ministry, Germany will approve an additional 400 million Euros in military aid for Ukraine. These funds will be added to the 8 billion euro budgeted by Ukraine for 2024. The exchange rate is $1 = 0.8965 euro. (Additional reporting from Pavel Polityuk, in Kyiv, and Charlotte Van Campenhout and Tassilo Humel in Brussels. Writing and editing by Timothy Heritage, Conor Humphrey and Max Hunder.
(source: Reuters)
