IMF Mission to visit Ukraine from August 29 to September 9.

"IMF Mission to visit Ukraine August 29 to September 9, neaded by Mr. Thanos Arvanitis to continue discussions of the second revision of the program on stand-by agreements and 2011 consultations in accordance with Article IV", - said in a press release of the IMF Resident Representative in Ukraine Max Alier.

At the end of July 2010 IMF decided to resume cooperation with Ukraine, adopting a new stand-by program of SDR10 billion (about $ 16 billion). At that time Kyiv received the first tranche of 1.25 billion SDR. In December 2010 the IMF agreed to provide the country the second credit tranche stand-by of 1 billion SDR (about 1.6 $ billion).

Stand-by program contemplated the allocation quarterly to Ukraine eight more tranches, starting in mid-March 2011, in case of successful continuation of cooperation. Their volume are at SDR1 billion each, except the last in SDR0, 75 billion.

However, the IMF Mission, which worked in March in Kyiv, did not recommend the IMF Executive Board to take a positive decision on the allocation of the next tranche to the country. The IMF expected Ukraine to approve the pension reform and solve the problem of gas tariffs for the population.

The government suggests that the two tranches stand-by program can be combined, which will replenish exhange foreign reserves of the NBU just about at $ 3 billion.