Sweden to provide World Bank guarantee for €236m loan to Ukraine
The Swedish government has decided to provide the World Bank with a second guarantee that will enable Ukraine to receive a loan of approximately SEK 2.5 billion (€236 million).
The Swedish government said the loan would be used, among other things, to cover essential public expenditures in Ukraine's state budget resulting from Russia's full-scale invasion.
"Ukraine is facing both immediate and long-term funding challenges. Sweden is therefore providing budget support via the EU and the World Bank," said Benjamin Dousa, Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade. "I am proud that, with this guarantee, Sweden is helping to sustain essential public services in Ukraine, despite the war. The guarantee is an investment not just in Ukraine's future and freedom, but also in that of Europe and Sweden," the statement reads.
The decision implements authorisation granted by the Swedish parliament earlier this year allowing the government to enter into guarantee agreements in 2026.
"Sweden thus guarantees a loan of €236 million (approximately SEK 2.5 billion)," it adds.
The guarantee is provided to the World Bank and will allow loans to be issued to Ukraine under the World Bank's PEACE support programme. Among other things, the programme helps finance pension payments, salaries for public-sector employees, and assistance for economically vulnerable groups and internally displaced persons.
With the new guarantee included, Sweden's total guarantees to the World Bank for lending to Ukraine amount to approximately €280 million. The guarantee will remain in force until 2056 and constitutes a long-term commitment.
On 28 May, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson announced that 16 used Gripen fighter jets are to be sent to Ukraine, and there are plans to purchase 20 new aircraft of the same model.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine will use funds allocated for defence from the European Union's €90 billion loan, in particular, for the purchase of Gripen fighter jets from Sweden.