Editor’s note: Moses Becker is a special political commentator for News.Az. He holds a PhD in political science and specializes in interethnic and interreligious relations. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the position of News.Az.

Fraudulent claims for taxpayer funds during the COVID-19 pandemic cost the UK government £10.9 billion ($14.5 billion), according to a new independent report. Schemes like Bounce Back Loans and Eat Out to Help Out lacked safeguards against fraud, the report said.

European Union leaders are exploring a plan to offer long-term financial and military assistance to Ukraine, using hundreds of billions of pounds in frozen Russian assets held throughout Europe.

Ukraine would only repay the reparation loan once it receives compensation from Russia for the damages caused during the war. The idea was proposed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen last week, at a time when President Donald Trump is reducing direct U.S.-funded military aid to Kyiv.

A well-known whiskey brand is facing a $100 million lawsuit for allegedly failing to repay its loans, according to court documents.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Treasury announced it had released the $20 billion U.S. portion of a $50 billion loan from the G7 to Ukraine. This loan, backed by frozen Russian sovereign assets, was transferred to a World Bank intermediary fund for economic and financial support to the war-affected nation, News.az reports citing Reuters.

China will cut the loan rates of the individual housing provident fund by 0.25 percentage points, the central bank announced Friday.