Support for purchase of Ukrainian weapons is new in EU loan — Mathernova

This was announced by Katarina Mathernova, the Ambassador of the European Union to Ukraine, in an interview with Ukrinform.

“As President von der Leyen mentioned during the press conference today, there is clearly preference to buy directly in Ukraine. That’s the novelty – supporting procurement and purchasing of Ukrainian weapons,” Mathernova stated.

She added that priority is also given to purchases in the EU. Still, if it concerns weapons or components that are not available in Europe or are not produced in Ukraine, purchases can be made in third countries, including the US.

Compared to the SAFE mechanism, these conditions are even better for Ukraine, Mathernova believes.

“SAFE is an instrument for member states, and for Ukraine only indirectly. But this here is an instrument for Ukraine. So in that sense, it’s even better than SAFE. This is money for Ukraine, not money for member states to work with Ukraine,” the Ambassador of the European Union to Ukraine noted.

She added that the loan is essential for the IMF's Executive Board to approve its program, as it depends on Ukraine not having a funding gap.

In addition, “to Russia, it’s a very clear signal that the EU stands with Ukraine and supports both its military and its public services, its economy and state,” Mathernova noted.

“It’s also extremely important to recall that this loan will only be repaid if Russia pays reparations to Ukraine. I think that's a very generous structure and a very important element of the overall support,” she noted.

As reported by Ukrinform, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has announced the details of the approved proposal for a joint European loan to Ukraine, amounting to €90 billion for the next two years. She explained that one-third of the loan, or €30 billion, will be used for budget support, and the remaining €60 billion will be used to support defense.