Private creditors gave Ukraine $40 billion in loans during the rule of ousted president Viktor Yanukovych; the loans will be gradually repaid to reduce the country's external debt, according to Prime Minister of Ukraine Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Ukrainian internet-edition Apostrophe reported.
"In the three years, private lenders gave $40 billion, while the entire world has pledged to lend us $25 billion more in the next four years. With these [recent] loans, we have managed to pay our creditors back and, what is more, we've managed to reduce the country's foreign debt, so that the next generations to come do not inherit these debts," Yatsenyuk said during the TV program "10 Minutes with the Prime Minister."
According to him, Ukraine was able to repay $14 billion to foreign creditors in 2014 while borrowing much smaller amounts.
"Last year we raised $9 billion in loans and paid our foreign creditors back $14 billion, which we had not borrowed. That was [former president Viktor] Yanukovych who was so light-heartedly relying on extensive borrowings," Yatsenyuk said.
The premier insists that the private creditors should support the restructuring of Ukraine's debts.
According to him, the Ukrainian authorities "have frankly asked our creditors to help Ukraine – Ukraine's debts owed to the private creditors must be restructured."