Ukraine Prez ratifies macro-financial assistance deal with EU

Kiev, Sep 15 (IANS) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a law on the ratification of the memorandum and loan agreement with the European Union (EU) on receiving macro-financial assistance of up to 1.2 billion euros ($1.4 billion).In a statement, the President's press service said on Monday that the memorandum and the loan agreement were signed on July 23 in Brussels, reports Xinhua news agency.The macro-financial assistance program is intended for 12 months and will be provided through two tranches of 600 million euros each. The first tranche's allocation could be immediately after the agreement enters into force.The provisions of the draft memorandum agreed with the European Commission stipulate eight obligations to be fulfilled by the Ukrainian side to receive the second part of macro-financial assistance, which include the increase of medical procurement transparency, tax and customs administrations reform, and strengthening the independence and integrity of the judiciary system.The total EU assistance to Ukraine in the form of macro-financial loans has reached 3.8 billion euros since 2014.It is the largest amount of macro-financial assistance that the bloc has provided to a non-EU country.
--IANS ksk/