Nemyria says IMF has not refused to continue cooperation with Ukraine until end of presidential campaign

18:00

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has not refused to continue to cooperate with Ukraine until the end of the presidential campaign in the country, Ukrainian Vice Premier Hryhoriy Nemyria has said.

"The International Monetary Fund was and is ready to continue its cooperation with Ukraine without waiting for the end of the presidential election in Ukraine," he said at a press conference in Kyiv on Monday.

He said that at 1405 on Monday he had had a phone conversation with IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who noted that his statement on such a possibility [the end of cooperation with Ukraine] had been misinterpreted by the media.

Nemyria said that a key condition for continuing cooperation with the IMF and receiving the next tranche by Ukraine is the need to draft a joint position on this issue in Ukraine.

"This will depend on when the government, the National Bank of Ukraine ... and the Presidential Secretariat reach agreement on the minimum parameters required to continue the program [of cooperation with the fund]," he said.

Nemyria said that one of the greatest difficulties in talks is the law on a rise in social standards, which was adopted by the Verkhovna Rada and signed by the head of state.

He said that the adoption of this law foresees a budget deficit of 3-7% in the state budget for next year.

He also said that the fund described as "regular" the situation with the implementation of an IMF demand for a rise in minimum gas tariffs for the population and municipal heat suppliers.

"The fund doesn't insist on this [rise in these tariffs] as an urgent measure required to continue the review [of the cooperation program]," he said.

Nemyria said that the government would do all it can to reach understanding with the National Bank of Ukraine and the Presidential Secretariat on the need to continue cooperation with the fund.

In particular, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko ordered the holding on Tuesday of a meeting of the monitoring committee on the implementation of Ukraine's cooperation program with the IMF in order to discuss the steps required to continue this cooperation. Representatives from the Presidential Secretariat and the National Bank of Ukraine were invited to the meeting.

Nemyria also said that he had spoken with representatives of the European Commission on the possible provision of a EUR 610 million loan to Ukraine. He said that this sum could be provided to the country after the continuation of the cooperation program with the IMF.

He said that the loan would be allocated in three tranches. The provision of the first tranche, worth EUR 110 million, has already been agreed with all of the EU agencies, he said.

The allocation of the second and third tranches, worth EUR 500 million, would require additional confirmation.

If Ukraine gets the next tranche of the IMF loan, the respective funds could be sent to the country by the end of this year.