Yara Nardi/Reuters
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attended a session on Africa, climate change and development on the first day of the G7 Summit at the Borgo Egnazia resort in Savelletri, Italy.
CNN
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Leaders of the Group of Seven nations have agreed to lend money to Ukraine secured by profits from frozen Russian investments, a senior government official confirmed on Thursday.
The United States and G7 nations are placing a high value on showing support for Ukraine at this year’s summit in Italy. Although Ukraine is not a G7 member, its President Volodymyr Zelensky attended the summit and took part in a joint press conference with President Biden on Thursday evening.
“Will we stand with Ukraine?” Biden said at a news conference. “Will we stand for sovereignty and freedom and oppose tyranny? The United States, the G7 and countries around the world have consistently answered that question: yes. And I say again, we’re going to stand with Ukraine.”
The two leaders will issue a joint statement shortly, the culmination of “years of” negotiations complicated by a patchwork of jurisdictional laws that required the direct involvement of President Biden, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and other senior U.S. officials.
“Once the highest levels of politics are committed, technocrats will act and the technical details will be worked out,” the official said.
“The situation on the battlefield remains severe, and if the war continues, Ukraine will need significant funding next year and beyond. The G7 countries in Puglia shared the view that this summit is the best opportunity to take joint action to close the funding gap,” the official said.
The official added that “it is fair to make the difference by having Russia pay, rather than our taxpayers, and we have found a way to respect the rule of law in every jurisdiction.”
At the news conference, Biden reaffirmed his commitment to Ukraine after the two leaders signed an agreement pledging enduring U.S. support for Ukraine’s defense now and into the future.
But Biden may be making promises that he cannot keep if his political rival, former President Donald Trump, wins the White House again in November.
Further U.S. support for Ukraine could be at risk under the new Trump administration, who has long praised strongmen including Russian President Vladimir Putin and shocked world leaders earlier this year by saying Russia would be allowed to “do whatever it wants” if U.S. partners didn’t meet certain defense spending obligations.
Meanwhile, Zelensky appeared optimistic that his country would retain U.S. support no matter who became president.
“They work on the basis of the people’s voice, and without the people it’s not possible,” Zelenskiy, speaking in Ukrainian, said of the U.S. leadership.
“I think there’s no doubt that the country will choose a leader, a president. And whoever the country chooses, it seems to me that first and foremost, everything depends on the unity of this country or that country. And if the people are with us, any leader will be with us in this fight for freedom,” he added, according to a real-time translator.
The loans would be drawn from funds frozen by Western leaders following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Just $3 billion of the frozen funds are in U.S. banks, but a much larger amount — hundreds of billions of dollars in total — is in European banks.
Negotiators are focusing on a loan amount of about $50 billion.
It will take some time for Ukraine to start receiving the funds, but officials said the effort is “moving forward with urgency” and remains committed to “being ready to disburse $50 billion this year.” If the loan is disbursed by the end of 2024, it will ensure that the money reaches Ukraine before the U.S. presidency changes. Biden faces former President Donald Trump in November’s presidential election, but Trump has refused to commit to sending more funds to Ukraine.
The United States, which remains a key ally for Ukraine, has been notoriously difficult to deliver on funding commitments for defense systems and military weapons. Earlier this year, the Republican-led Congress withheld much-needed military funding for the war-torn country following President Trump’s opposition to the deal. The withholding has had real implications for Ukraine’s defense capabilities.
The Senate ultimately passed a $95 billion aid package that included financial aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, but Ukrainian officials say support for ground troops came too late.
The deal reached in Italy on Thursday will free up European funds and ensure they are not hampered by further political fighting in the United States.
“The next step is to formalize the joint declaration commitments with the 27 EU member states. After that, a contract needs to be drawn up between the lender – Ukraine as the recipient – and the intermediary,” the official said.
From there, a payment schedule can be agreed upon.
There is also a plan in place in case a peace deal is reached and the war ends: “The G7 leaders have committed that the assets will remain locked until Russia pays for the damage. So if there is a peace deal, either the assets will remain locked and continue to accrue interest and repay the loan, or Russia will pay for the damage it caused. Either way, the resources are there to make the repayments.”
This story has been updated with additional reports.
