Ukraine expects to revise program with IMF taking into account growth in expenses on defense, says prime minister

Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk has expressed hope that the mission of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) which started a first revision of the Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) in Kyiv on June 24 will work successfully, and amendments to the SBA will be made, taking into account the forced growth in expenses on defense and security of the country.

"I hope that our partners from the IMF will take into account all of the new challenges and difficulties Ukraine faces now," the prime minister said opening a cabinet meeting in Kyiv on Wednesday.

He said that despite the difficulties, Ukraine is observing all criteria under the SBA.

As reported, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on April 30 approved a two-year SBA worth SDR 10.976 billion (about $17.01 billion), for Ukraine.

The approval of the SBA enabled the immediate disbursement of SDR 2.058 billion (about $3.19 billion), with SDR 1.29 billion (about $2 billion) being allocated to budget support, which was performed in early May.

It is projected that the second-fourth disbursements scheduled for July 25, September 25 and December 15, 2014 will total SDR 914.7 million each, while the fifth-eighth quarterly disbursements of 2015 will amount to SDR 1.372 billion each. The ninth disbursement of SDR 686 million will be provided in mid-March 2016 if the terms and conditions stipulated in the program are observed.