Dec. 20 (UPI) — Officials for the European Union have agreed to loan $105 billon to Ukraine to help it stay financially solvent over the next two years amid Russian attacks in the Odesa region.
The money is in lieu of an allocation to Ukraine from frozen Russian assets equal to nearly $246 billion and being held in Belgium, the BBC reported.
The funds are equal to about two-thirds of the amount that Ukraine will need to pay its bills and give it a stronger bargaining position as peace talks continue with the aim of ending the Ukraine War that started when Russia invaded its neighbor on Feb. 24, 2022, according to The New York Times.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the loan is interest-free and only would be repaid if Russia were required to pay reparations to Ukraine.
News of the E.U. allocation comes after a Russian missile strike near Odesa that killed eight and injured 27 others on Friday night, CNN reported.
Russian missiles struck a port facility in Pivdenne, and some of those killed and wounded were on a bus that was struck during the attack.
The missile strikes were part of an ongoing aerial campaign against the Odesa region over the past nine days and caused a power outage in Odesa, which is located on the Black Sea and about 300 miles south of Kyiv.
Two bridges in southern and northern Odesa were knocked out in recent strikes and are being repaired.
Russian forces also are targeting the energy infrastructure in Ukraine and have used drones and missiles to damage or destroy many targets in recent months.
