(Dan Tri) – Ukrainian media said that in order to have more budget and weapons for the war with Russia, Kiev may accept US aid in the form of a loan.

Ukraine needs hundreds of billions of dollars to rebuild the country devastated by war (Photo: Reuters).

Over the weekend, US House Speaker Mike Johnson announced that he plans to submit to the legislature a bill to provide more than $60 billion in aid to Ukraine after the Easter holiday, which ends on April 9.

The package could include `a number of important innovations`, with Mr Johnson mentioning credit terms and the possibility of using frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian lawmakers in the Verkhovna Rada (parliament) refused to officially comment on details related to the US aid plan for Ukraine, such as time frame and credit terms.

`Mr. Johnson himself does not know what this aid package will include, what it will look like and when it will be approved. So making any predictions is like pointing a finger at the sky,`

Another anonymous source in one of the key committees of the Ukrainian parliament said Kiev would accept US aid, even with credit terms, because it has no other choice.

`If it were a loan, we would still get $60 billion from the US. Is that a worse option? That’s for sure. Can Ukraine pay off this loan? Not now

The news comes as Danylo Hetmantsev, head of the Verkhovna Rada’s Financial, Tax and Customs Policy Committee, reported last week that Ukraine’s national debt had increased by more than $50 billion in the two years running.

According to him, as of February 29, the total debt amounted to 143.7 billion USD, mainly due to preferential loans from abroad.

And the EU’s 50 billion euro ($53.9 billion) aid is one of the largest `soft loans` that Ukraine will have to repay over the next 20 years.

`The EU provides Ukraine with non-refundable aid to cover interest on loans. So the principal amount is used but will have to be returned,` said the Pidlasa official.

In February, a study by the World Bank, the United Nations, the European Commission and the Ukrainian government showed that rebuilding the Ukrainian economy after Russia’s special military campaign is expected to cost money.

In addition, on the front lines, trickle of aid from the West caused Kiev to face a serious shortage of weapons and ammunition.