Supporting Ukraine

New IMF loan raises questions

Last week, representatives from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Ukrainian government reached what is known as a staff-level agreement about a line of financing for the literally embattled Eastern European country. This is unprecedented, given that the IMF has not ever previously made a loan to a country that is in a state of war. It is not as if this question does not frequently arise — Ethiopia, to take just one example, could have benefited from more flexibility about lending to those at war. The IMF’s commitment is of $15.6 billion; Ukraine is, as it happens, already