US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reaffirmed sustained US support for Ukraine on Wednesday for “as long as it takes,” urging Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to remain focused on combatting corruption and strengthening governance.
According to Yellen, the fourth meeting of a high-level roundtable on Ukraine, which took place at the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, reflected “continued condemnation of Russia’s aggression and robust international support for Ukraine from its allies and partners.”
She said the United States would continue to provide robust economic support to Ukraine, but countries affected by Russia’s blockade of Ukrainian food exports also needed more help.
She welcomed Zelenskiy’s clear focus on fighting corruption and strengthening accountability and good governance, adding, “Continuing to address these difficult issues will be key to delivering the future that Ukrainians deserve.”
She said Ukraine’s economic team had delivered sound policies and solid results in an unbelievably challenging situation, citing what she called the country’s “positive” performance on its $15.6 billion loan program from the IMF.
The IMF program had been key for delivering macro stability and advancing reforms, Yellen said, noting that continued work on these reforms would be “essential to recovery and reconstruction.”
Yellen welcomed the European Union’s pledge of 50 billion euros over four years for Ukrainian economic assistance and recovery. “As an international community, we must continue to provide Ukraine the significant, predictable, and timely financial support it needs to keep the government running,” she said, adding that the Western coalition would also keep working to restrict Russia revenues.