Sweden increases support to Ukraine with new loan guarantee for the World Bank

“Ukraine is facing both immediate and long-term funding challenges. Sweden is therefore providing budget support via the EU and the World Bank. I am proud that, with this guarantee, Sweden is helping to sustain essential public services in Ukraine, despite the war. The guarantee is an investment not just in Ukraine’s future and freedom, but also in that of Europe and Sweden,” says Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Benjamin Dousa.

This decision follows the authorisation granted to the Government by the Riksdag earlier this year to enter into guarantee agreements in 2026. Sweden thus guarantees a loan of EUR 236 million (approximately SEK 2.5 billion).

The guarantee is being issued to the World Bank (IBRD) and will facilitate lending to Ukraine within the framework of the World Bank’s PEACE Project. The project helps ensure that pensions are disbursed, civilian government workers’ salaries are paid, and support is provided to those who have been internally displaced or are financially vulnerable. This comes at a time when the war is placing an immense strain on public finances.

The World Bank is a key actor in facilitating international support to Ukraine. Bilateral loan guarantees provided by member countries enable the World Bank to expand its lending capacity to Ukraine. In 2022, Sweden was one of the first countries to issue a guarantee of this kind, and today’s decision now allows for a second guarantee to be issued.

With this new guarantee, Sweden’s guarantees to the World Bank for loans to Ukraine total around EUR 280 million. The guarantee is a long-term commitment that runs until 2056. As the cost of meeting any claims satisfies the criteria for international aid, it would be funded through the international development budget.