$20 billion… Washington transfers a loan to Kiev guaranteed by Russian assets

Washington announced that it had transferred to a fund in the World Bank $20 billion that Ukraine would receive in the form of a loan guaranteed by interest on frozen Russian assets.
This is out of a loan worth $50 billion that the G7 had committed to providing to the Ukrainian government.

The US Treasury Department said in a statement, “The United States fulfilled the commitment it made in October by transferring these funds” to the fund allocated for Ukraine at the World Bank.
She indicated that these funds will be made available to Ukraine through the fund.

Support is crucial

After months of discussions, in October, leaders of the G7 countries reached an agreement to use interest generated from Russian sovereign assets frozen in their country due to international sanctions imposed on Moscow, to guarantee a $50 billion loan to Ukraine.

“These funds – financed by extraordinary revenues generated from Russian fixed assets – will provide Ukraine with critical support,” the statement quoted Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen as saying.

Reducing the cost of war

White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said, “The loans provided by the United States and the G7 will be repaid from the interest generated by the frozen Russian sovereign assets.”
She pointed out that this would put the cost of the war on Russia’s shoulders and not on American taxpayers.
The transfer of these funds to Ukraine comes at a crucial time for Kiev, which has increasing doubts about the future of American support for it once Democratic President Joe Biden hands over power to Republican President-elect Donald Trump on January 20.

Manufacture of long-range missiles

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the Piklo hybrid missile-unmanned aerial vehicle successfully completed its first combat mission.
He added that the country’s goal of manufacturing long-range missiles and drones “has become a reality, after it was a kind of science fiction.”

In Kiev on Tuesday, when honoring Ukrainian scientists, Zelensky referred to the “Palyanitsya” jet drone, which reports indicate was first deployed in August.
“Balyanitsia has entered the phase of mass production,” Zelensky added.

Rota missile launch tests

The Ukrainian army officially received the first batch of these weapons, which have a range of up to 700 kilometers, last week.
Zelensky pointed to successful tests of launching the Rota missile.
He also pointed to the long-range Neptune missile that was used in April 2022 to sink the cruiser Moskva in the Black Sea.
Pointing out that it will soon become a “terrible reality for the Russian occupiers.”