The EU seeks agreement on a €9B loan to Ukraine this week.

The European Union intends to agree on the details of the €9B financial assistance package for Ukraine in the coming days, reported Bloomberg. The new macro-financial assistance program will consist of 25-year loans with a 10-year grace period to repay the principal. EU leaders are due to meet in Brussels on Thursday and Friday to discuss Ukraine’s reconstruction plan and application for Ukrainian membership. All 27 member states must approve the aid plan. The European Commission first proposed this aid package in mid-May to cover part of Ukraine’s financial needs of around €5B a month. Since the proposal, the European Commission and Germany have disagreed on the package’s design: the EC insisted on loan assistance, while Germany advocated using grants to avoid increasing Kyiv’s debt burden.