Ukraine can get funds from 'reparation loan' from EU soon – French FM
Ukraine can receive the "reparation loan" from the European Union soon to use it for defense purposes, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said.
"Within the coming weeks, we will give Ukraine funds that make defense for at least three years possible thanks to a loan that the European Commission will give Ukraine and that will be compensated for at the relevant moment with reparations that Russia will pay to Ukraine," Barrot told reporters in Luxembourg on Monday before a session of the EU Foreign Affairs Council.
"This loan will enable Ukraine to arm itself to defend itself and, in particular, of course, with European weapons," Barrot said.
He said "the policy of pressure" on Russia would continue through the 19th package of sanctions, which he hopes will be adopted in the coming days. This package is targeted "against Russian energy infrastructure" and key industry players, Barrot said. In this regard, he mentioned Rosneft and Gazprom Neft.
Barrot also said that today he will suggest starting the work on the 20th package of sanctions, which will target "those forces, those states that continue to support" Russia’s military efforts, directly or indirectly. The pressure on vessels associated with Russia will also increase in partnership with the countries of the "coalition of the willing," Barrot said.
The western media reported earlier that the European Commission was considering the possibility of using the Russian frozen assets in an amount of around EUR 170 billion stored in the Euroclear financial depositary in Brussels. It is expected that EUR 140 billion out of these funds will be used for a "reparation loan" to Ukraine. This issue is expected to be considered at the EU summit on October 23-24.