The World Bank’s Executive Board agreed on Thursday to create a financial intermediary fund to support Ukraine with expected contributions from the United States, Canada and Japan, three informed sources said.

Two sources familiar with the vote said the only objection to the vote came from Russia.

The fund, which will be managed by the World Bank, will help fulfill the G7 pledge to provide Ukraine with up to $50 billion in additional financing by the end of the year, the sources said.

One of the sources said that the specific amounts that the United States, Japan and Canada will contribute are still being prepared, but they will be supported by interest on frozen Russian sovereign assets.

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World Bank President Ajay Banga told Reuters in May that he was “absolutely” open to the idea of ​​running a G7 loan fund for Ukraine backed by profits from frozen Russian sovereign assets – at least for non-military purposes.

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The assets were frozen shortly after Russia launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Banga said in May that the World Bank had significant experience managing similar facilities for non-military donor funds, including a special fund for Afghanistan. He said that this work could be repeated to obtain a loan for Ukraine.

The World Bank vote came a day after European Union envoys agreed to give Ukraine up to 35 billion euros as part of the bloc’s share of a larger planned loan from G7 countries, also backed by proceeds from Russia’s central bank’s frozen assets, a statement said. He said from the Council of the European Union.

The new fund will allow non-European countries to participate in the broader loan.

The G7 and the European Union announced last June that they would provide a $50 billion loan to help Ukraine, served by profits generated from frozen Russian assets in the West.

—Preparing by Andrea Shalal Editing by David Ljunggren and Leslie Adler