European Commission disburses first €4.5 billion of bridge financing to Ukraine under Ukraine Facility

On 20 March, the European Commission disbursed the first €4.5 billion of support under the EU’s new Ukraine Facility.

“Through this exceptional bridge financing, the EU is providing much needed liquidity to Ukraine, to help finance the functioning of the state, such as public wages, pensions, and the provision of basic public services, so that the country can continue focusing efforts on winning the war,” says a press release by the the Commission.

On the same day, Ukraine has also submitted its official Ukraine Plan that paves the way for regular payments under the Facility, conditioned to the reform and investment agenda of Ukraine for the next four years. 

“The plan maps out how Ukraine can get back to rapid growth and start to recover the losses that the war has caused. With it, Ukraine has laid a solid foundation for the EU’s support, right up until the end of 2027,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

She added that in April, once Ukraine fulfils the conditions agreed, the EU will make a second disbursement of the bridge financing of €1.5 billion.

As a next step, the Commission will now swiftly assess the Ukraine Plan and submit a proposal for a Council of the European Union implementing a decision to approve it as conditions to access regular payments.

The Ukraine Facility of up to €50 billion will provide stable and sustainable financing to support Ukraine’s recovery, reconstruction, and modernisation, including key reforms necessary on its EU accession track for the period of 2024-2027. This amount is composed of up to €17 billion in grants and up to €33 billion in loans.

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Press release