Ukraine has turned to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for additional funding, the multilateral financier said on Friday, adding that it is exploring all options to help the war-torn country.

Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the IMF, said in a statement on Friday that she has so far met with the IMF’s executive directors and “assured them that our staff will continue to work closely with the authorities to support Ukraine in every way we can.”

Georgieva, outlining that the IMF “has a number of instruments in its toolkit” which it can use to provide aid to the Ukraine, indicated that she is thinking of fast-tracking the disbursement of an outstanding US$2.2 billion which the fund promised to lend the country under a Stand-By Arrangement signed in June 2020. That deal, originally set to run for 18 months to December 2021, was valued at US$5 billion, but the Ukraine late last year requested an extension of the programme to June 2022.

Calling the conflict in the Ukraine “a matter of grave concern”, the IMF chief said it “threatens to undo some of the progress” made by the global economy to recover “from the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic”.

“Beyond Ukraine, the repercussions of the conflict pose significant economic risks in the region and around the world. We are assessing the potential implications, including for the functioning of the financial system, commodity markets, and the direct impact on countries with economic ties to the region. We stand ready to support our members as needed, in close coordination with our international partners,” Georgieva said.

She added that the fund “will also continue to work hand in hand with the World Bank Group and other partners to coordinate our support and ensure the maximum benefit for Ukraine.”

A day ahead of Georgieva’s statement, World Bank President David Malpass said the bank also was preparing “fast-disbursing” financing options for Ukraine.

Also earlier on Friday, Georgieva, speaking at a Black History Month event at Georgetown Law School in Washington DC, said that Western sanctions against Russia will add to the economic impacts of the war in Ukraine. She also said that greater financial market uncertainty caused by the conflict may cause capital “outflows from emerging markets, when we need exactly the opposite — more financing going there.”

So far the impact of the conflict has been primarily being transmitted through higher energy and grain prices, adding to inflation. Russia is the world’s third-largest producer of oil in the world, accounting for 11 per cent of the global output. Russia and the Ukraine produce 30 per cent of the wheat consumed in world and are major exporters of the commodity. However, their Black Sea ports have been closed to shipping, spurring shortages and pushing the price of a vital crop higher when supply chain disruptions have already sent food costs spiraling. Russian and Ukraine wheat feed billions of people in the form of bread, pasta and packaged foods. The countries are also key suppliers of barley, sunflower seed oil and corn, among other products.