BRUSSELS — Donors including the Canadian government and the European Commission on Saturday pledged a combined 9.1 billion euros in donations, loans and grants to support refugees fleeing the war following Russia’s invasion.
The fundraising event in Warsaw, Poland, yielded 1.8 billion euros to support internally displaced people inside Ukraine, and 7.3 billion euros for refugees who have fled the country to neighbouring states.
Governments, companies and individuals together pledged 4.1 billion euros in donations, which will be distributed largely via the Ukrainian authorities or the United Nations.
The remaining 5 billion euros were loans and grants from EU financial institutions — including a 4 billion euro program to help provide housing, education and health care for refugees arriving in EU countries.
"We stand by your side, be it now in the times of war, be it with the refugees, but most importantly after this war has been won by Ukraine, for the time for reconstruction and rebuilding the country," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who visited Kyiv on Friday and co-hosted the event with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
More than 4 million people have now fled Ukraine to seek shelter in EU countries, while 6.5 million people have fled their homes but remain inside Ukraine, the European Commisison said.
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European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen, second left, and Poland’s President Andrzej Duda, left, preside at the main event of the “Stand Up for Ukraine” global campaign for pledging funds for Ukraine and its refugees, at the Palace on the Water, in Warsaw, Poland, April 9, 2022. Launched by the European Commission and Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the event was joined remotely by Trudeau and by Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
