The G7 group — the US, Canada, Japan, the UK, France, Germany, Italy, and the EU — is looking to reach a political agreement on the promised $50 billion loan to Ukraine by the end of October and to make the funding available by the end of the year, European Commission Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis said on Monday.
"The G7 presidency is now aiming for political commitment on participation in this … loans initiative around the end of October, which would allow all G7 lenders sufficient time to operationalize loans by the end of this year," Dombrovskis said before the European Parliament's Committee on International Trade.
In June, the G7 leaders agreed to issue the $50 billion loan to Ukraine by the end of the year, to be repaid with future profits from frozen Russian foreign reserves.
Earlier this month, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU alone would provide $35 billion as part of the G7 pledge.
"There are already clear commitments from Canada, UK, and Japan to come on board," Dombrovskis stated.
The US has sought safeguards that would make sure the Russian assets, most of them held in Europe, remain frozen to repay the loan. The EU's decision to freeze Russian assets requires unanimous approval and must be renewed every six months, which prompted fears that Hungary may block the renewal.
"The US has indicated that a change of the sanctions regime is a precondition for their involvement on an equal par with the EU," Dombrovskis said. "In the absence of such a change, the US can still join the initiative, but with a much lower amount."
