European Commission proposes 200-mln-euro macro-financial aid to Serbia

BRUSSELS, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission proposed Thursday to provide macro-financial assistance to Serbia, in the form of a loan of up to 200 million euros (295 million U.S. dollars).

The assistance will support the adjustment program agreed by the Serbian government with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help the country through the global financial crisis, said the commission, the executive body of the European Union (EU).

The loan would be provided in two installments, tentatively in the second and fourth quarter of 2010 respectively. The assistance supports, and is conditional on the respect of the adjustment program agreed between Serbia and the IMF. It complements the latter's financial assistance to the country.

Earlier this year, the EU had already agreed to pay 100 million euros (147.8 million dollars) in budget support grants.

EU's macro-financial assistance is an exceptional EU crisis response instrument available to EU neighbors. It is conditional and complements assistance by the IMF. The EU recently committed to provide 125 billion euros (185 billion dollars) to the IMF to increase the IMF's capacity to help countries with financial difficulties. The EU contribution accounts for a third of the increase in the IMF's lending capacity from 250 billion dollars to750 billion dollars.