KYIV/OTTAWA - Ukraine will get $50 billion in loan from the Group of Seven (G7) countries using profits from frozen Russian financial assets, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported Thursday.
The political agreement was made on the opening day of the annual G7 summit in the southern Italian region of Puglia.
Currently, the G7 countries are working on details regarding providing the funds, the report said, citing German Finance Minister Christian Lindner.
The G7 countries have frozen about 300 billion dollars of Russian assets in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, according to media reports.
The G7 intends to provide financing that will be serviced and repaid by future flows of extraordinary revenues stemming from the immobilization of Russian sovereign assets held in the European Union and other jurisdictions, according to a release
Also on Thursday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced 5 billion Canadian dollars ($3.6 billion) in funding as the country's contribution to G7 Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration Loans, an initiative of using frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine.
"Canada has long advocated for new and innovative ways to support Ukraine," said Trudeau. "Through this initiative, G7 countries would intend to bring forward the future revenues from frozen Russian sovereign assets."
According to the release, the G7 intends to provide financing that will be serviced and repaid by future flows of extraordinary revenues stemming from the immobilization of Russian sovereign assets held in the European Union and other jurisdictions.
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Trudeau first proposed freezing the assets of Russia's central bank at the G7 leaders' meeting on Feb 24, 2022, and in Budget 2022, Canada introduced the world's first legislation to allow the seizure and forfeiture of sanctioned Russian assets.
According to local media reports, the Canadian police has frozen 140 million Canadian dollars ($102 million) in Russian assets in Canada since February 2022, and Global Affairs Canada said it ordered the seizure of a Russian plane and a company believed to be tied to a Russian oligarch.
Air attacks
An air-raid alert was issued throughout Ukraine early Friday as the country was hit by a series of air attacks by Russian forces, the Ukrainian Air Force said in a statement.
According to the statement, several batches of missiles entered Ukraine over the airspace of the northern Sumy and Chernihiv regions early Friday, and moved towards Kiev, the western city of Rivne and the town of Starokonstyantyniv in the western Khmelnytskyi region.
During the second wave of the attacks, Russia launched a Kinzhal missile at Ukraine, said the statement.
Explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital and the Khmelnytskyi region during the air alert, Ukraine's public broadcaster Suspilne reported.
The Starokonstyantyniv airfield, which supposedly will host F-16 fighters, has long been targeted by Russian forces.
