IMF to send review mission to Ukraine in coming weeks

Director of the IMF Communications Department Gerry Rice said this at a briefing on May 9, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

"I do not have specific dates at the moment for the first review mission under the IMF program but we do expect a mission to return to Kyiv sometime in the coming weeks and that will be to assess progress under the program and discuss policies for the remainder of the year with the new administration there," Rice said.

He also said that the IMF leadership had been in constant contact with Kyiv during the transition period in Ukraine.

"I can confirm that the Managing Director in fact has been in touch with Mr. [Volodymyr] Zelensky on his election as president of Ukraine," Rice said.

In this regard, he recalled that IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde had been in touch with outgoing President Petro Poroshenko, thanking him for close cooperation during his presidency and expressing the hope and the expectation that progress under the economic program would continue.

"[Lagarde] underscored that the IMF continues to stand ready to support Ukraine and to help it meet the challenges that lie ahead," Rice said.

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