The European Union is preparing alternative mechanisms for financing Ukrainian defense in case Viktor Orban and Robert Fico block the promised loan of EUR 90 billion. This is reported by Politico.
Next week, EU leaders will gather in Brussels to try to convince the Prime Ministers of Hungary and Slovakia to keep their word on the allocation of funds, calculated until the end of 2027. Despite the preliminary agreement of Budapest, legislative features allow any member state to stop payments at the final stage of approval of documents.
In case of intransigence of opponents of assistance, a group of Baltic and Nordic countries has already developed a plan for direct financial support. It is about providing bilateral loans totaling EUR 30 billion, which will allow Ukraine to stay afloat during the first half of this year.
Since such tranches will be provided by individual countries, they do not require consensus approval by the entire EU bloc. In particular, the Netherlands has already budgeted EUR 3.5 billion in annual support for Kyiv until 2029.
According to European Commissioner for Economy Valdis Dombrovskis, the EU will provide the necessary funds in any way possible, despite the latest difficulties on the part of Hungary. Although the transition to individual loans was previously considered undesirable due to the risk of demonstrating a split in European solidarity, it is now seen as the only way out.
As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, after the International Monetary Fund's decision on a new loan, Ukraine received a financial reserve that will allow it to cover its budget needs at least until the beginning of May. This gives the European Union more time to resolve the issue of blocked aid of EUR 90 billion, which is being held up by Hungary.
It was also reported that the European Union will guarantee to provide Ukraine with a loan of EUR 90 billion despite the blocking by Hungary, as announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on March 9 at a conference of ambassadors in Brussels.
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