NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks during a media conference, ahead of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers, at NATO headquarters in Brussels, April 3, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)
KIEV – Secretary-General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Jens Stoltenberg said Monday that the alliance will discuss a multi-year support program for Ukraine, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported.
Ukraine received the first tranche of $2.7 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) new aid program, Andriy Pyshnyy, the chairman of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), announced on Monday
The program will be on the agenda of the meeting of NATO foreign ministers on April 4-5, Stoltenberg said.
"I expect that the ministers will agree to start work on the development of a multi-year program for Ukraine," Stoltenberg told a press conference in Brussels, Belgium.
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Along with providing support for Ukraine in the conflict with Russia, the program is important for the long-term perspective of the development of relations between Ukraine and NATO, said Stoltenberg.
At their meeting, the foreign ministers of NATO countries will also discuss ways to strengthen the support for Ukraine's Armed Forces and ensure their transition to NATO standards, he added.
On April 4, the meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Commission will be held within the framework of the NATO foreign ministers summit.
IMF tranche
On the same day, the chairman of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), Andriy Pyshnyy, announced that Ukraine received the first tranche of $2.7 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) new aid program.
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Ukraine is now actively working to successfully pass the first review of the program and receive the next tranche of aid, he added.
Last week, the IMF approved a new 48-month extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) worth about 15.6 billion dollars.
The program aims to anchor policies that sustain fiscal, external, price and financial stability, and support the economic recovery of Ukraine.