The White House announced on Wednesday that the transfer of frozen assets from Russia’s central bank to the Ukrainian government will commence by the end of the year. The payments will be sent to Kiev in the form of a $50 billion forgivable loan funded by interest proceeds on the sanctioned holdings.
The disbursement will comprise $40 billion evenly divided between the European Union and the United States, along with $10 billion from Canada, Japan, and the United Kingdom.
U.S. President Joe Biden praised the initiative during a ceremony formalizing the settlement, saying “Ukraine can receive the assistance it needs now, without burdening taxpayers. These loans will support the people of Ukraine as they defend and rebuild their country. And our efforts make it clear: tyrants will be responsible for the damages they cause.”
Biden’s Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, echoed the president’s remarks while suggesting that “letting Ukraine fall would invite further aggression by Putin and jeopardize the safety of our NATO allies in Europe, who we are committed by treaty to defend.”
The new tranche of financial relief comes after contributions of at least $64 billion in taxpayer spending from the U.S. and $40 billion from the E.U. has been used to help Ukraine’s military operations since Russia invaded the Eastern European nation in February 2022.
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