Friday Briefing: A $50 Billion G7 Loan to Ukraine

At the G7 summit in Italy, the member countries agreed on a plan to give Ukraine a $50 billion loan to help it buy weapons and begin to rebuild damaged infrastructure. The new loan comes at a crucial moment in the war, when Russia has the momentum on the battlefield.

The loan is expected to be repaid using interest earned on $300 billion in frozen Russian assets, which are mostly in a financial institution in Belgium. In our Opinion section, Janet Yellen, the U.S. treasury secretary, explained how the loan will work.

President Biden also signed a 10-year security pact with Ukraine’s government, to show a long-term U.S. commitment to the country. It’s designed to be a bridge to Ukraine’s membership in NATO. Japan signed a 10-year security agreement with Ukraine as well, which included a pledge of $4.5 billion.

Separately, NATO’s defense chiefs gathered yesterday in Brussels to pledge additional weapons to Kyiv. They also met to prepare long-term military commitments to be announced next month at a summit in Washington. One boost for Ukraine: An agreement that Hungary would not contribute to the military alliance’s war effort — but also would not block it.

Biden’s angle: The security agreement is his latest effort to persuade allies that the U.S. will continue backing Ukraine even if Donald Trump wins the presidency this fall.

More on the G7: Most leaders arrived at the summit beleaguered, embattled or endangered. Many of them are facing elections that weaken their positions. Read more about the summit.