BRUSSELS
The EU has given Ukraine a 1.8 billion euro ($2 billion) loan to pay for reforms tackling corruption and to liberalizing the economy.
“Helping Ukraine to achieve peace and transform the country into a modern, stable and prosperous economy is one of the most important tasks Europe faces today," European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis said in a statement on Friday. The deal was signed at the EU leaders meeting in Latvian capital Riga.
Ukraine’s economy has come under increasing pressure due to the conflict in its industrialized eastern region.
Meanwhile, European Council President Donald Tusk suggested Ukrainian and Georgian nationals would soon have visa-free travel across the bloc.
