(Al Jazeera Media Network) The White House has announced that the Group of Seven (G7) will offer Ukraine a $50-billion loan backed by interests accrued on Russian government assets frozen by the political and economic group of wealthy nations.
President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that the United States will cover $20 billion of the loan, which āwill be paid back by the interest earned from immobilized Russian sovereign assets.ā
āIn other words, Ukraine can receive the assistance it needs now, without burdening taxpayers,ā Biden said in a statement.
āThese loans will support the people of Ukraine as they defend and rebuild their country. And our efforts make it clear: tyrants will be responsible for the damages they cause,ā he added.
Countries in the G7 ā Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the US ā imposed heavy sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, cutting off Moscowās access to its own funds in their financial system.
Russia has rejected efforts to confiscate its assets, describing them as ā21st-century piracyā.
The loan could help ease domestic pressures that the US is facing for its continuing military and budgetary aid to Ukraine.
Foreign donors have pledged $66 billion for Ukraine over a multiyear period to help the country rebuild.
While the Biden administration has committed to supporting Kyiv, earlier this year funds appropriated for Ukraine nearly ran out amid a standoff in Congress, with some Republicans growing sceptical of the aid, if not opposing it altogether.
In April, Congress ā which is tasked with appropriating money under US laws ā passed a $61-billion aid package for Ukraine that included billions of dollars in military assistance to Israel and Taiwan.
Ukraineās supporters have been concerned that Republican candidate and former President Donald Trump may reconsider Washingtonās assistance to Kyiv, should he win the US presidential election next month.
On Wednesday, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the loan, which will be available by the end of the year, will further penalize Russia for its invasion.
According to Yellen, G7 countries have frozen about $280 billion of Russian sovereign assets held in their financial institutions.
āAs we look ahead, Russia will increasingly be forced to bear the costs of its illegal war, instead of taxpayers in the US and Europe,ā she told reporters.
Speaking alongside her Ukrainian counterpart Sergii Marchenko, Yellen added that the move will send a message to Russian President Vladimir Putin that āwaiting outā western support for Ukraine is a losing strategy.
āSupporting Ukraine is essential to upholding the rules-based international order that has supported peace and prosperity for America and the world since the end of World War II,ā Yellen said.
Despite its emphasis on the ārules-based orderā when addressing Russia and China, the Biden administration has faced mounting criticism for its unconditional support for Israel.
