WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Deputy U.S. Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo discussed Ukraine’s structural reform agenda with Ukrainian finance minister Serhiy Marchenko on Tuesday and assured him of the U.S. commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, the Treasury said in a statement.
“Deputy Secretary Adeyemo emphasized that the United States will remain a partner to Ukraine as it enacts reforms to make its economy competitive and resilient,” the Treasury said.
The International Monetary Fund has frozen financing for Ukraine under a $5 billion loan program agreed in 2020 due partly to concerns over the independence of the country’s national anti-corruption bureau (NABU).
In late May, Ukraine’s parliament gave initial approval to legislation boosting the bureau’s independence, a move required by the IMF to revive the loan program aimed at helping the eastern European country overcome the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Treasury said Adeyemo and Marchenko discussed the importance of Ukraine’s structural reform program and cooperation with international financial institutions, such as the IMF.
(Reporting by David Lawder; editing by Jonathan Oatis)