You're reading: Ukraine asks U.S. for $2.3 billion loan

Crisis-hit Ukraine asked U.S. for a $2.3 billion loan to redeem debts it incurred for Russian gas, Interfax newswire quoted Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko as saying on Saturday.

Ukraine has been paying the bills for Russian gas on time but Moscow has been voicing concern that Kiev will not be able to do so because it was severely hit by the world-wide economic downturn.

"Yesterday, a delegation returned from Washington, it was asking for a $2.3 billion loan to pay the gas arrears," Yushchenko was quoted as saying to students and teachers of a University in Western Ukrainian city of Ternopol.

It was not immediately clear if Ukraine was communicating with the International Monetary Fund, which delayed a tranche of a loan because of a lack of agreement among Ukrainian authorities over the 2010 budget.

Ukraine had expected to receive about $3.8 billion in the IMF’s planned fourth tranche.

On Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Hryhoriy Nemyria said Ukraine expects the IMF to disburse the next tranche of a stand-by programme, delayed from November, by the end of this year. [ID:nGEE5BA1UX] A pricing row between Moscow and Kiev last January led to Russian gas supplies stoppage through Ukraine to Europe for almost two weeks.