The United States is ‘very close’ to finalising a $20bn loan to Ukraine from the proceeds of Russia's frozen assets, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has said. These funds are the US share of the $50 billion approved by the Group of 7 countries, Politico reminds.
Speaking to journalists, Yellen said that the United States is ‘99% done, with only a few relatively small things left to do’. The official confirmed that the funds are to be transferred to Kyiv by the end of 2024.
Yesterday, the European Parliament approved a loan of 35 billion euros (about $38 billion) to Ukraine, and before that, the United Kingdom agreed to provide 3 billion.
According to Yellen, the US authorities are confident that they will be able to contribute $20bn of the approved $50bn, even if the EU fails to agree on extending sanctions against Russia.
‘We have a high degree of confidence that the money will be there and will remain locked in,’ Yellen said.
She said that the asset freeze is one component of a wider sanctions programme, which she said would be ‘unthinkable’ for any EU member to end while Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues. Hungary is known to be against the sanctions.
‘The guarantees are already in place,’ Yellen said. ‘We have asked for some modest strengthening, but we feel that this is a solid loan that will be serviced by Russian assets - by Russia, not by American taxpayers.’