The UK has issued a joint statement on a debt deferral for Ukraine as part of the bilateral group of creditors, expressing its continued solidarity with Ukraine.
The statement reads:
We, the Group of Creditors of Ukraine, express our solidarity with and support for Ukraine as it defends itself against Russia’s unjustified, unprovoked and illegal war of aggression.
We note the publication today of a consent solicitation from Ukraine to defer the debt service due to bondholders from August 1st, 2022 and to extend payment maturities.
In these exceptional circumstances, and acknowledging Ukraine’s exemplary track record of honoring debt service to date, the members of the Group of creditors of Ukraine support this consent solicitation and strongly encourage bondholders to consent to Ukraine’s request. The members of the Group of Creditors of Ukraine also note the concurrent publication today of a consent solicitation from Ukraine to adjust certain payment mechanisms in the terms of its GDP-linked warrants, and encourage warrantholders to consent to these requests.
Bondholders’ and warrant-holders’ approval of Ukraine’s proposals would represent substantive support for the government and people of Ukraine.
In light of this, we, as official bilateral creditors of Ukraine, intend to provide a coordinated suspension of debt service due by Ukraine from August 1st, 2022 until end-2023, with the possibility of an additional year, on our claims and consistent with the national laws of the creditor countries.
We also strongly encourage all other official bilateral creditors to swiftly reach agreement with Ukraine on a debt service suspension.
We will continue to closely coordinate and assess the situation with the support of the IMF and the World Bank.
Background information
Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America are members of the Group of Creditors of Ukraine. Observers to the Group include Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Korea, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.