Director of the EBRD for Ukraine, Artem Shevalov: "We believe that Russia's presence is toxic for organizations such as the EBRD, but this certainly applies to other international organizations as well."
Ukraine once again called on the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to deprive Russia of membership in the bank. Ukraine's Finance Minister Oleksandr Marchenko addressed the bank's annual meeting held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, with a call to get rid of the "toxic presence of Russia".
As Artem Shevalov, director of Ukraine at the bank, said in an interview with Voice of America, he was pleasantly surprised by the fact that some shareholders immediately responded to Ukraine's proposal, and reminded the management and other shareholders that this issue has not been resolved and should not be forgotten.
"We have been voicing this issue since the very beginning of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, starting from the first days of March last year," Shevalov said. we believe that Russia's presence is toxic for organizations such as the EBRD, but this certainly applies to other international organizations as well."
Russia's expulsion may not have a practical impact on the EBRD's decision-making, because Russia's share in the bank is relatively small, and the Russians are still "afraid" to personally participate in the meetings, says Shevalev.
"They (Russians) have a presence, although not physical, they are still afraid to return to the bank's headquarters, but virtually they participate in the work of our governing bodies, and if we talk about the reputation of such leading organizations, it is simply inappropriate, because it affects on the institution's reputation," Shevalov says.
The bank's management has not yet responded to Voice of America's request to comment on its position regarding Russia's membership in the institution.
The bank is increasing its role in helping Ukraine and on Thursday decided to increase its capital for the third time in its history, this time to be able to help Ukraine.
It will be inappropriate and incomprehensible if Russia makes decisions about future investments in Ukraine, being the very terrorist who caused the damage
"The key decision that was made is the beginning of increasing the capital of the bank so that it can significantly increase investments in Ukraine. And agree, it will be inappropriate and incomprehensible if Russia will make decisions about future investments in Ukraine, being the terrorist itself , which caused damage," Shevalev says.
The EBRD, which is the largest institutional investor in Ukraine, wants to increase aid to Ukraine even before the war ends.
"The more support Ukraine receives now, the more the economy will be able to recover," EBRD President Odile Renault-Basso said in an interview with Voice of America.
She emphasized that Ukrainian business continues to work, despite the difficulties, considering it an important contribution to victory. "Business suffered, but many companies survived. This is very important because it reduces the cost of reconstruction," Renault-Basso said.
As the Voice of America reported, this month the EBRD and the development banks of the Group of Seven countries agreed to create an investment platform for Ukraine.
Among the banks participating in the investment platform, in addition to the EBRD, there are development banks from Japan, Italy, Canada, the USA, Great Britain and Germany. The joint investment platform, by design, will help banks that are not present in Ukraine to participate in reconstruction projects.
"Ukraine's needs during the reconstruction period are broad and exceed the scope of any one institution. As a result, careful coordination between Ukraine's partners is needed to maximize efficiency, create synergies and increase impact," the EBRD said in a statement.
