No Specific Date For Conclusion Of IMF's Discussions On Ukraine - IMF Spokesperson

No Specific Date for Conclusion of IMF's Discussions on Ukraine - IMF Spokesperson

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has no specific deadline for the conclusion of discussions with Ukraine on providing new financial support, the fund's spokesperson Gerry Rice said during a press briefing on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th September, 2018) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has no specific deadline for the conclusion of discussions with Ukraine on providing new financial support, the fund's spokesperson Gerry Rice said during a press briefing on Thursday.

"I do not have any further details on those discussions, which are ongoing. And I do not have a specific date for the conclusion," Rice told reporters when asked about the talks.

An IMF team earlier on Thursday wrapped up a two-week visit to Ukraine without announcing a new aid deal.

�Kiev has been receiving loans as part of the IMF's $17.5 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) assistance package. The loans, which are part of a four-year program aimed at reviving the Ukrainian economy, were approved by the IMF back in 2015. So far, Kiev has received four installments of aid totaling $8.7 billion.

The IMF froze the aid payments in April, and a fifth payment was never disbursed because Ukraine had not met all of the fund's requirements. The IMF has said that Ukraine needs to first make progress on the issues of establishing an independent anti-corruption court, gas pricing, and tax policy before it can release the loans.

Media reports have said that Ukraine's latest talks with the IMF are aimed at replacing the $17.5 billion EFF package with a new standby agreement.