The first £752m tranche of the UK's Extraordinary Revenue
Acceleration (ERA) loan to Ukraine has been transferred in
demonstration of the UK's commitment to Ukrainian defence.
The ERA funding is on top of the £3bn a year commitment by the UK
to provide military aid for Ukraine. The Prime Minister has been
clear that a strong Ukraine is vital to UK national security.
The money transferred yesterday [Thursday], is part of a £2.26bn
loan backed by the profits of immobilised Russian sovereign
assets, and will help Ukraine buy military equipment to defend
itself against Russia's unprovoked aggression.
It follows the Prime Minister's commitment to increase defence
spending to 2.5% of GDP from 2027, with an ambition to reach 3%
in the next parliament as economic and fiscal conditions allow,
and announcing an additional £1.6bn of UK Export Finance to
Ukraine.
To mark this signal of UK support, Chancellor of the Exchequer
, visited RAF Northolt to meet
Armed Forces personnel. She also met suppliers sending vital
equipment to the Armed Forces of Ukraine through UK MoD rapid
procurement contracts.
Companies at RAF Northolt yesterday included Malloy, MBDA and
Thales, as well as UK-based SMEs including Greenjets, Kirintec
and Windracers – displaying a range of defence equipment such as
air defence missiles, bomb disposal suits and cargo drones.
Increased defence spending will support highly skilled jobs and
apprenticeships across the UK. Last year, defence spending
supported over 430,000 UK jobs the equivalent to one in every 60,
with 68% of defence spending going outside of London and the
Southeast, benefitting every nation and region of the country.
, Chancellor of the Exchequer,
said:
“Now more than ever in this changed world, Ukraine needs our
support as a reliable partner to secure peace following Russia's
unprovoked invasion.
“British excellence and innovation in defence was on display as I
visited RAF Northolt yesterday. Our contribution to the war
effort via increased defence spending is also supporting UK
industries and jobs and putting money back in the pockets of
hardworking British people.”
The multibillion-pound funding is the UK's contribution to the G7
ERA Loans to Ukraine Scheme, through which G7 countries will
collectively provide $50bn to support Ukraine. The UK's
contribution is earmarked for military procurement to bolster
Ukraine's defences, and is being delivered in three £752m
payments. A tranched approach will allow for greater flexibility
in military procurement, and will provide the best value for
money for both the UK and Ukraine.
Chancellor Reeves and Ukraine's Finance Minister Sergii Marchenko
signed the UK-Ukraine bilateral loan agreement on Saturday in the
presence of Prime Minister and Ukraine's President
Volodymyr Zelenskyy in No.11 Downing Street.
Last week, the Chancellor alongside the Business Secretary and
the Defence Secretary confirmed that a new UK defence innovation
organisation will work with innovative firms to rapidly get
cutting-edge military technology into the hands of British
troops, and harness the ingenuity of the UK's leading tech and
manufacturing sectors.
The Prime Minister and President Zelenskyy also signed a historic
100 Year Partnership in Kyiv earlier this year. The landmark
treaty formalised the unbreakable bonds between the UK and
Ukraine, broadening and deepening the relationship across defence
and non-military areas and enabling closer community
links.
