Von der Leyen vows Ukraine funding despite setback

The European Union will find a way to provide Ukraine with the promised €90 billion loan, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said, despite Hungary continuing to block its approval.

After the Brussels summit, she acknowledged that leaders had failed to convince Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, but stressed that the commitment to Kyiv would be fulfilled ‘one way or another’.

Budapest’s stance has drawn strong criticism from other member states.

European Council President António Costa described Hungary’s resistance as unacceptable and warned against blackmail by individual countries. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called it an unprecedented display of disloyalty that could damage trust within the Union.

Leaders have therefore tasked the European Commission with finding alternative ways to provide financial assistance to Ukraine without Hungary’s consent.

(reuters, pir)