20/01/2009 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 20 January, the Ecofin Council endorsed a decision to grant a loan of €3.1 billion to Latvia under the Community support mechanism for the balance of payments of EU countries not belonging to the eurozone. The loan will be allocated over three years, in several instalments with maturity of 7 years at most. It comes within a support plan set up with the Nordic countries, Estonia, the Czech Republic and the International Monetary Fund, amounting to €7.5 billion. The European contribution remains subject to implementation of the detailed economic adjustment programme adopted by the Latvian government last month. The plan above all comprises immediate and sustainable budgetary consolidation, strengthened crisis management capacities of the Latvian authorities as well as structural reforms. (A.B./transl.jl)