“New Prime Minister Svyrydenko admitted the possibility of applying for a new program to the IMFNew Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced Ukraine’s likely appeal to the IMF for additional financing, as international donors have provided only half of the necessary funds. She also plans to discuss financial aid and joint weapons production with the United States.
”, — write: unn.ua
DetailsAccording to Svyrydenko, international donors have so far allocated only half of the approximately $75 billion needed for the war-torn budget over the next two years.
In particular, given that the IMF loan program of about $16 billion expires in 2027, uncertainty about the duration of the war will likely lead to discussions of a new plan during the creditor’s review next month, the Prime Minister said.
If the baseline scenario assumes that the war will continue next year, it is very likely that we will have a new IMF program
Economic and military scenarios will be on the agenda during the August visit, “to determine whether a new program would be appropriate and what its likely parameters might be,” Svyrydenko said.
Cooperation with the USAThe new Prime Minister said she also plans to speak remotely in the coming days with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, with whom she worked intensively on a minerals agreement, to discuss potential financial assistance. The new Cabinet of Ministers will also seek to cooperate with the US on arms procurement, including Patriot air defense systems, and joint drone production.
According to Svyrydenko, this could include building factories in the US for the production of unmanned aerial vehicles.
“The idea is that we are truly a strong nation – I believe this is one of the best examples in the world of a unified battlefield for testing technologies,” the Prime Minister said.
Weapons productionIn addition to strengthening Ukraine’s finances, Svyrydenko’s main goal will be to increase domestic arms production in the country as a defense against the risk of losing external aid. But she made it clear that – given the urgency during wartime – the window of opportunity “will be very short.”
“Our task is to achieve results in most areas within a very short period of time,” said Svyrydenko, who replaced Denys Shmyhal, whose five-year term was a record for Ukraine. She said she aims “to achieve something within the next few months.”
Any new agreement with the IMF will be part of this, the publication writes. According to officials familiar with the views of the fund and the National Bank of Ukraine, negotiations on a new program are expected this year. The Washington-based lender signed the current lending agreement two years ago, breaking precedent by not lending to a country at war.
Svyrydenko promised to resolve all outstanding issues, including anti-corruption measures, within the current program and the Ukraine Facility, EU financial assistance, by the end of the year.
In the interview, Svyrydenko, the publication writes, “tried to downplay the problem of corruption, citing surveys that show that while the vast majority consider bribery to be widespread, far fewer people have encountered such activity.”
“Frankly, in Ukrainian society and certain social groups, this issue is being amplified and exaggerated,” the Prime Minister said. On the other hand, external observers “evaluate Ukraine by different indicators,” she said.
She also defended the government’s rejection of a candidate for the Bureau of Economic Security, which was demanded by the IMF and the European Commission, even though the candidate had been approved by the selection committee.
The Cabinet of Ministers “acted in accordance with established procedures: we received the candidacy from the selection committee, voted collectively, and returned the decision to the committee,” Svyrydenko said.
Svyrydenko commented on the procedure for appointing a new head of the BEB17.07.25, 12:33 • 88474 views