|
The IMF is a key international lender to Kyiv and its four-year
program is a crucial part of a bigger global economic support
package to the country, which is gearing up for a third winter
trying to fend off Russia's full-scale invasion.
Kyiv is spending about 60% of its total budget to fund its army
and relies heavily on financial support from its Western
partners to pay pensions and wages to public sector employees
and finance social and humanitarian spending.
An IMF statement said a Fund monitoring mission had started
policy discussions with the Ukrainian authorities.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is reshuffling his government to
reset the team ahead of the critical autumn and winter months
and six ministers tendered their resignation.
Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko is expected to retain his
position, analysts and lawmakers said.
Marchenko has previously said the government faced an uncovered
gap of about 500 billion hryvnias ($12 billion) to fund its
defense for the rest of the year.
The government plans to raise taxes and has already implemented
other measures, including increasing import and excise duties
and borrowing more on the domestic market, to raise extra
revenue.
Ukraine also won an agreement from bondholders to restructure
and write down its debt.
The successful completion of the IMF review would enable Ukraine
to secure $1.1 billion in new financing in the coming months,
officials have said.
Ukraine has received about $98 billion in financial aid from its
Western partners since the start of the war, finance ministry
data showed.
(Reporting by Olena Harmash; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
[© 2024 Thomson Reuters. All
rights reserved.]
Copyright 2022 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may
not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
