Ukraine welcomes release of IMF's billion-USD aid

Ukraine on Thursday welcomed a decision by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to grant Kiev a third tranche of financial support worth 1 billion U.S. dollars from its 17.5-billion-dollar aid program.

"It shows that the international organization supports Ukraine's reform agenda. It is also a signal to foreign investors that our country is on the right path to restore sustainable economic growth," Oleg Churiy, deputy head of the National Bank of Ukraine, was quoted as saying by the bank's press service.

The IMF's funds are expected to be transferred to the accounts of the Ukrainian government in the coming days, Churiy said, noting that Kiev will use the long-awaited aid package to replenish its foreign exchange reserves.

According to the central bank, the latest IMF disbursement would also pave the way for Ukraine to receive a total of 1 billion dollars in loan guarantees from the United States and 600 million euros (about 675 million dollars) of aid from the European Union.

The IMF executive board completed the second review of Ukraine's economic program late Wednesday, enabling a release of the third tranche that has been delayed since last year over Kiev's protraction in implementing the required reforms.

In 2015, Ukraine received a total of 6.7 billion dollars from the global lender in two tranches of bailout funds. Endi