The European Commission issued the first €4.5-billion ($4.9 billion) payment in financial aid for Ukraine from a €50-billion support fund on Wednesday. Facing the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the payments are “crucial to help Ukraine maintain the functioning of the state,” commission president Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement. The financial support is intended to bolster the warn-torn country’s public finances, including paying pensions and salaries and providing basic public services. The EU executive arm announced the first payment as Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal…