KIEV (Sputnik) —Kiev expects to receive the recently approved $500 million loan from the World Bank by September 9, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said Wednesday.
"The World Bank decided yesterday to provide Ukraine with $500 million to carry out economic reforms, and we expect to receive these funds by September 9 this year," Yatsenyuk said at a cabinet meeting.
He added that the decision made by the bank’s board of directors would pave the way toward additional financial assistance from Japan and other international contributors, under parallel financing arrangements.
Ukraine, whose national debt exceeds $70 billion, increasingly relies on outside help to maintain its struggling infrastructure.
In February, the World Bank pledged $2 billion to Ukraine in support of its banking, governance, business reforms and investment. Japan committed to $1.5 billion in aid and $16.6 billion in grants.
