The World Bank (WB) has signed an agreement with Ukraine to provide a loan of 454 million U.S. dollars to help the country cover its budget deficit, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said Wednesday.

"Today we completed our work with the World Bank and inked an agreement on receiving a loan of 454 million U.S. dollars for 30 years to cover the planned budget deficit. The cost of this loan is 5 percent annually," Tymoshenko said at a cabinet meeting.

The loan, the prime minister said, means that Ukraine will be able to cover its budget deficit. He said cooperation with the World Bank "is going well."

Ukraine has planned a budget deficit of 2 percent this year.

(Xinhua News Agency November 26, 2008)