US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen prepares to lay a wreath at the memorial wall in Kyiv. AP
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen prepares to lay a wreath at the memorial wall in Kyiv. AP
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen prepares to lay a wreath at the memorial wall in Kyiv. AP
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen prepares to lay a wreath at the memorial wall in Kyiv. AP

Janet Yellen makes surprise visit to Ukraine to push economic aid


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US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen made an unannounced visit to Kyiv on Monday to reaffirm US support for the struggle against Russia's invasion and promote US aid to bolster Ukraine's war effort.

Ms Yellen met President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other government officials a matter of days into the war's second year, repeating US assurances delivered by President Joe Biden a week ago in the Ukrainian capital.

"I bring to Kyiv a clear message from President Biden and the American people: we will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes," said Ms Yellen.

"We are matching our words with actions. The US is proud to be Ukraine’s largest bilateral donor."

To date, the US has provided close to $50 billion in assistance to Ukraine.

Ms Yellen reaffirmed that the support is not “charity", rather "an investment in global security and democracy".

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, who also met Ms Yellen, said the two had discussed further US sanctions on Russia aimed at weakening its economy and military and "confiscating frozen Russian assets and putting them to the benefit of the recovery of Ukraine".

But Ms Yellen said there were still significant legal obstacles to fully seizing the $300 billion in Russian central bank assets frozen by sanctions.

Ms Yellen also announced the transfer of the first $1.25 billion from the latest $9.9 billion tranche of assistance from Washington.

In a private meeting with Mr Zelenskyy late in the afternoon, the Treasury chief said she had commended him "for his leadership and resolve in the face of Russia's illegal and unprovoked war".

The Treasury said Ms Yellen welcomed the Ukrainian President's actions to strengthen government and address corruption — actions needed to ensure US economic aid is spent responsibly.

Ms Yellen's visit comes a week after Mr Biden made a similarly unannounced trip to Kyiv and promised $500 million in additional military aid for Ukraine and new sanctions on Russia announced days later.

Shortly before her arrival in the capital, the city's air raid sirens rang out as a warning of a possible attack, although they often turn out to be false alarms.

Ms Yellen laid a wreath at a memorial wall for Ukrainian soldiers killed in the war, saying: "I am witnessing first-hand the devastating toll of [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s brutal war."

US President Joe Biden in surprise visit to Kyiv - in pictures

Reuters contributed to this report

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo

Power: 268hp at 5,600rpm

Torque: 380Nm at 4,800rpm

Transmission: CVT auto

Fuel consumption: 9.5L/100km

On sale: now

Price: from Dh195,000 

Our legal columnist

Name: Yousef Al Bahar

Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994

Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers

Why it pays to compare

A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.

Route 1: bank transfer

The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.

Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount

Total received: €4,670.30 

Route 2: online platform

The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.

Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction

Total received: €4,756

The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.

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What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

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The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm

Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm

Transmission: 9-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh117,059

While you're here
Sreesanth's India bowling career

Tests 27, Wickets 87, Average 37.59, Best 5-40

ODIs 53, Wickets 75, Average 33.44, Best 6-55

T20Is 10, Wickets 7, Average 41.14, Best 2-12

 

Company: Instabug

Founded: 2013

Based: Egypt, Cairo

Sector: IT

Employees: 100

Stage: Series A

Investors: Flat6Labs, Accel, Y Combinator and angel investors

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Favourite things

Luxury: Enjoys window shopping for high-end bags and jewellery

Discount: She works in luxury retail, but is careful about spending, waits for sales, festivals and only buys on discount

University: The only person in her family to go to college, Jiang secured a bachelor’s degree in business management in China

Masters: Studying part-time for a master’s degree in international business marketing in Dubai

Vacation: Heads back home to see family in China

Community work: Member of the Chinese Business Women’s Association of the UAE to encourage other women entrepreneurs

Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.

Based: Riyadh

Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany

Founded: September, 2020

Number of employees: 70

Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions

Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds  

Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices

THE CLOWN OF GAZA

Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah 

Starring: Alaa Meqdad

Rating: 4/5

One in nine do not have enough to eat

Created in 1961, the World Food Programme is pledged to fight hunger worldwide as well as providing emergency food assistance in a crisis.

One of the organisation’s goals is the Zero Hunger Pledge, adopted by the international community in 2015 as one of the 17 Sustainable Goals for Sustainable Development, to end world hunger by 2030.

The WFP, a branch of the United Nations, is funded by voluntary donations from governments, businesses and private donations.

Almost two thirds of its operations currently take place in conflict zones, where it is calculated that people are more than three times likely to suffer from malnutrition than in peaceful countries.

It is currently estimated that one in nine people globally do not have enough to eat.

On any one day, the WFP estimates that it has 5,000 lorries, 20 ships and 70 aircraft on the move.

Outside emergencies, the WFP provides school meals to up to 25 million children in 63 countries, while working with communities to improve nutrition. Where possible, it buys supplies from developing countries to cut down transport cost and boost local economies.

 

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Updated: February 27, 2023, 5:09 PM`