The United Kingdom has committed a $2.9 billion military loan to Ukraine as part of the Group of Seven’s Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration Loans for Ukraine scheme.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Defense Secretary John Healey announced the funding while visiting Ukrainian troops training in the country under Operation INTERFLEX. According to the British government, the loan will support Ukraine’s air defense and artillery investments and other military spending and supplement London’s ongoing $3.9 billion annual military aid commitment to Kyiv.
“This new money is in Britain’s national interest because the frontline of our defense — the defense of our democracy and shared values — is in the Ukrainian trenches,” Reeves said in a statement. “A safe and secure Ukraine is a safe and secure United Kingdom.”
‘Stand With Ukraine’
Under the G7 ERA initiative, first announced at the G7 Leaders’ Summit in Italy in June, member states Canada, France, Germany, Italy Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States and the European Union will lend Ukraine $50 billion to support its military, budget and reconstruction. The loan will be repaid using profits from frozen Russian assets, reportedly worth $281 billion in total.
In addition to the U.K. aid, Canada will contribute $3.6 billion to the initiative, while the EU, which includes G7 members France, Germany and Italy, has pledged up to $37.9 billion in assistance. While Japan and the United States have yet to announce their contributions, Reuters reports that all loans will be delivered this year.
The British loan will be given out in installments, with the government planning to introduce legislation soon to facilitate funds transfer. “This urgent funding will directly support Ukraine’s defense using the proceeds from assets that had helped fuel Putin’s aggression,” Healey said. “We will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes.”