Russia has agreed to purchase 11 billion euros of Ukraine’s debt and to cut the price its neighbour pays for gas by about a third.
The deal could be an economic lifeline for the cash-strapped country. But there are concerns that it will put Kyiv firmly back into Moscow’s orbit.
Ukrainian economic analyst Ihor Burakovsky told euronews: “By definition we are losing our sovereignty and we are becoming a kind of highly indebted country with all the political consequences, but [a] highly indebted country to one creditor, which is Russia.”
At a pro-EU rally in Kyiv, opposition leader Vitali Klitschko told euronews he was worried about what the Ukrainian government may have offered up in order to secure Russia’s help:
“We would hope that this hasn’t been done at the expense of Ukraine’s national strategic facilities, which could lead to negative consequences and dependence on our Eastern neighbour,” Klitschko said.
