Brussels, 18/05/2010 (Agence Europe) - With the adoption on Tuesday 18 May of the report by Vital Moreira (S&D, Portugal), by 604 votes to 37, with 16 abstentions, the European Parliament gave the go-ahead to the granting of micro-financial assistance to Ukraine in the form of a €500 million loan. The aid was proposed by the Commission in October 2009. The loan, to be repaid within 15 years, will help Ukraine finance its balance of payments deficit and meet its budgetary needs. It will supplement IMF support and the €110 in EU macro-financial assistance already granted in 2002. Parliament insisted that the lending conditions for the assistance must ensure better efficiency, transparency and accountability. To ensure that Parliament can monitor application of the decision, the Commission will brief it regularly on how the situation is developing and provide the relevant documents. The macro-financial assistance, MEPs believe, can only contribute to economic stabilisation of Ukraine if the country's main political forces ensure political stability and support rigorous implementation of the necessary structural reforms. (H.B./transl.rt)