Ukraine’s First Vice Prime Minister Stepan Kubiv and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission Director Susan Fritz on March 14 signed an intergovernmental agreement granting Ukraine $54 million in financial help, Voice of America has reported.
“The money will go to the fight against corruption, economic transformation, and the development of democracy,” U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch said.
“I’m convinced that this additional support will help Ukraine get closer to the prosperity and democracy that the Ukrainian people want and deserve.”
According to Kubiv, the money will be earmarked for three areas: the energy sector, compliance with the rule of law, and “the most important direction” – accountability of the government of Ukraine to the citizens of Ukraine.”
“It will let (Ukraine) continue with the decentralization reforms and strengthening local government,” he later wrote on Facebook.
The signing ceremony took place in Kyiv, and was also attended by Margot Ellis, USAID’s acting assistant to the administrator in the Bureau for Europe and Eurasia.
The total amount of financial help envisaged by the agreement is $123 million.
Cooperation between Ukraine and the United States, with regard to financial support and reform support, started back in 1992. Since then, according to Kubiv, Ukraine has received around $4.3 billion of U.S. financial aid, including $2 million issued by USAID.
