European Commission to unveil 5 bln euro package for Ukraine this week

BRUSSELS. Sept 6 (Interfax) - The European Union this week is preparing to release a new funding package of 5 billion euros in macro-financial assistance for Ukraine, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.

"The situation on the ground in Ukraine still requires our unabated support. On top of the 10 billion euros we have provided so far, we will propose an additional 5 billion euros in macro-financial assistance this week. The EU will be by Ukraine's side, for as long as it takes," von der Leyen said on social media following a meeting with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.

The 8th meeting of the EU-Ukraine Association Council took place in Brussels on Monday. According to the European Commission's communique, its participants discussed the bilateral agenda, including the implementation of the Association Agreement and today's state of bilateral cooperation. The EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and Ukrainian PM Shnyhal co-chaired the meeting.

The EU in July approved a proposal to provide Ukraine with the first 1-billion-euro tranche as part of a new 9-billion-euro macro-financial assistance program. The money was disbursed to Ukraine in early August. The European Commission said in late August that it was working to disburse the rest of the financial assistance to Ukraine.

The new macro-financial assistance program is the EU's seventh aid package for Ukraine. Kyiv received the last tranche as part of the previous, sixth, 1.2-billion-euro program in May.