FILE PHOTO: Flags of Ukraine and U.S. are pictured during a meeting between the U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov at the Pentagon, in Washington, U.S., August 30, 2024. REUTERS/Daniel Becerril/File Photo
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Biden administration has moved to forgive about $4.7 billion in U.S. loans to Ukraine, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Wednesday, as outgoing officials seek to do what they can before leaving office to bolster Ukraine in its war against Russia.
A funding bill passed by the U.S. Congress in April included just over $9.4 billion of forgivable loans for economic and budgetary support to Ukraine's government, half of which the president could cancel after Nov. 15. The bill appropriated a total of $61 billion to help Ukraine fight the full-scale invasion Moscow launched in February 2022.
