KYIV – U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew met separately today with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, and Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko to discuss the economic situation in Ukraine, the ongoing reform efforts, and the international community’s continued solidarity on imposing costs on Russia until it fully implements its commitments under the Minsk Agreements. He also met with members of Ukraine’s parliament.
In his meetings with Ukrainian leaders, Secretary Lew commended them for their efforts to date to strengthen Ukraine’s public finances, tackle corruption, repair and recapitalize the financial system, and reform the energy sector. Secretary Lew also underscored that the disciplined implementation of reforms—particularly in the development of Ukraine’s 2016 budget and in the fight against corruption—and resistance to pressure to slide back on those reforms are critical to ensuring sustained support from the international community and attracting private investment.
Secretary Lew reiterated that the Administration, working with Congress, intends to move forward with a third, $1 billion loan guarantee for Ukraine in the coming months. This U.S. loan guarantee will be conditioned on Ukraine’s continued implementation of its economic reform agenda, including continued adherence to the IMF program and progress on anti-corruption measures.
Secretary Lew also met today with the Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine Valeria Gontareva.
