Some EU member states aren't ready to approve aid package for Ukraine, says FM

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Some EU member states aren't ready to approve aid package for Ukraine, says FM

Some EU member states aren't ready to approve a €9 billion aid package for the country, its finance minister claims.

Some countries are not prepared to provide Kiev with a €9 billion $9.1 billion aid package, according to Ukrainian Finance Minister Sergey Marchenko, who was interviewed by Italian daily Corriere della Sera on Monday.

He claimed that the world is tired of Ukraine's conflict with Moscow.

We receive weapons and military aid, but this is not enough. It is a clear sign that the European Union and the rest of the world around Ukraine are tired of this war. The minister told the outlet they are suffering from oil and gas prices.

The EU package was blocked by Germany on Sunday, according to Corriere della Sera. Berlin has allegedly opposed proposals to finance Ukraine using common European debt, a move that has greatly alarmed Kiev. The newspaper also speculated that this was the true reason why Ukraine had abruptly sacked its ambassador to Germany, Andrey Melnik.

Marchenko said that some governments are not ready to support Ukraine with such an amount of money because of the EU aid package delay. Europe was united during the first months of the war. The minister said that now we see different opinions on how to support Ukraine.

Marchenko said that Kiev received much less than this and Ukraine needs €5 billion $5.05 billion every day. We need €5 billion a month, but we received €1.6 billion in April. We received €1.5 billion in May. In June, there was €4.4 billion. He said that the EU wants to know how Kiev is spending its money in July, but we are dependent on the European bureaucracy. The funds are intended exclusively for social and humanitarian programs, according to Marchenko.

The minister s comments came after he announced in mid-May that Ukraine may have to resort to painful measures to save the crashing economy due to the nation's conflict with Russia. He warned that the government might have to raise taxes, cut spending and nationalize certain businesses at the time.