LONDON-Western allies on Wednesday promised to make Russia pay for its invasion of Ukraine, as governments and private investors met to fund the country’s reconstruction from the ravages of war.
The World Bank has put an estimate of $14 billion on Ukraine’s immediate needs for repairing the damage caused by the bitter fighting.
But a recent study by the World Bank, the UN, the European Union and the Ukrainian government said the wider recovery of the economy would cost $441 billion.
“Let’s be clear: Russia is causing Ukraine’s destruction,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told delegates at the London conference.
“And Russia will eventually bear the cost of Ukraine’s reconstruction,” he added.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak voiced a similar message, promising to keep tough sanctions in place “until Russia pays up”, and use seized assets to get Ukraine back on its feet.
In the conflict overnight, Russia said it had downed three Ukrainian drones in the Moscow region, while Ukraine said its air defence systems had shot down six Iranian-designed attack drones in the west.