Zelenskyy confident EU will release part of loan in April

Ukraine expects the first tranche of the EU’s $90 billion loan as early as April, although EU leaders have so far failed to overcome Hungary’s veto. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said after the summit that he was ‘more optimistic’ and hoped a way could be found to release at least part of the funds to Kyiv.

The package is crucial for Ukraine as the country faces a persistent budget deficit in the fifth year of its war with Russia. It is estimated to require between $45 billion and $52 billion in external financing this year.

EU leaders agreed on the loan in December, but its disbursement has been blocked by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán over the lack of Russian oil supplies via the Druzhba pipeline. The European Commission has said it is exploring alternative solutions.

Meanwhile, Kyiv has reserves for only a few more weeks. Since the beginning of the year, Ukraine has received $5.5 billion in external funding and expects a further $1.2 billion from Japan. Almost 60 per cent of budget spending is allocated to defence.

(reuters, max)