EU to consider further assistance to Ukraine

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA

The European Commission is ready to consider further Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA) to Ukraine, it said on Friday.

"The Commission stands ready to assess the relevance of a successor MFA operation and, if judged warranted, to present a proposal for a new MFA operation in early 2018," it said.

It recalled that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko expressed interest in further financial assistance from the EU during a meeting with European Commission headed by Jean-Claude Juncker on 24 Nov.

"In addition to political support, the EU has pledged a €12.8 billion [$15.1 billion] support package to support the reform process including through unprecedented disbursements via the EU's Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA) instrument to help the country cover its external financing needs," it said.

It added Ukraine will remain one of the EU's key partners and the organization will continue to stand by the country as it further progressed with its reforms and economic adjustment.

"It is a vital decision and high evaluation from the EU of our progress in reforming the country and making it closer to the European Union," Poroshenko tweeted.

The EU has supported Ukraine since March 2014 following Russia’s annexation of Crimea after an illegal independence vote.