Ukraine will be able to receive financial support from European Union countries for defense even if Hungary and Slovakia continue to block the planned EU loan of 90 billion euros, Politico reports.
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EU leaders plan to discuss the issue at a summit in Brussels next week. They hope to persuade the prime ministers of Hungary and Slovakia to support the loan, which would cover about two-thirds of Ukraine's financial needs to continue fighting the Russian invasion until the end of 2027.
However, if Budapest and Bratislava do not change their position, the Baltic and Nordic countries have prepared an alternative. According to two EU diplomats familiar with the negotiations, they could provide Kyiv with about 30 billion euros in bilateral loans. Such a mechanism does not require unanimous approval by all EU states.
Separately, Dutch Finance Minister Elko Heinen told colleagues that his country plans to provide Ukraine with 3.5 billion euros in bilateral aid annually until 2029.
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According to the publication, Hungary or any other EU country could still block the €90 billion loan, despite the previous agreement in December. The reason is that one of the necessary legislative acts to disburse the funds requires unanimous support from all member states.
As “FACTY” wrote, the IMF is launching a four-year financing for Ukraine.
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