Kiev, Ukraine:
Ukraine has received $1.5 billion in funding under a World Bank program to help it pay for its budget and social spending to fend off a Russian incursion, Prime Minister Denis Shmihal said on Friday.
Ukraine relies on financial aid from Western partners, but foreign financing shrank in the first two months of the year and a U.S. aid package has been blocked by congressional Republicans for months.
The finance ministry added that Kyiv managed to attract about $9 billion in external financing in March. Donors include the European Union, Canada, Japan, the International Monetary Fund and the United Kingdom.
Schmihal said the new round of World Bank aid was being financed by Britain and Japan.
“$984 million comes from Japan and $516 million from the UK. These funds will be used for social and humanitarian needs and budget expenditures for reconstruction,” he wrote on X.
In early March, Ukraine received the first tranche of 4.5 billion euros ($4.9 billion) in aid under the EU’s transitional financing plan.
Since the Russian invasion in February 2022, Kyiv has used much of its own revenue to fund its defense efforts, leaving it heavily reliant on funding from Western partners to cover its social spending.
“External financing reaches $10.2 billion in 2024 and $83.8 billion since the start of all-out war. International aid is intended to finance priority social spending of Ukraine’s state budget,” the ministry added.
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