Politico: Fico and Orban opposed the EU’s 50bn package for Ukraine
Prime Ministers of Hungary and Slovakia Viktor Orban and Robert Fico of Hungary and Slovakia have opposed a 50 billion euro aid package for Ukraine from the European budget, Politico reported, citing an informed diplomat familiar with the discussions.
Earlier it became known that the EU countries at the summit of European leaders failed to agree on the amendment of the multi-year budget of the association, which, among other things, provides funding for Ukraine in the amount of 50 billion euros for the period from 2024 to 2027, the coordination of these amendments by the end of the year will continue.
Fico, according to the publication, “referred to the problems with corruption in Ukraine”. At the same time, Orban stated in advance and publicly that “EU support does not work”. As the publication reminds, to change the EU budget requires the consent of all 27 members of the bloc.
European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen said that the EC had revised the EU’s multi-year budget for the period from 2024 to 2027 and proposed that countries increase it by 66 billion euros to help Ukraine, implement migration and refugee programmes and strengthen the union’s competitiveness.
Orban called the proposal frivolous because it is not known where the money given to Kiev earlier went. He promised that Budapest would block the allocation of additional funds to Ukraine until there was a clear justification for the measure. At the same time, Fico had earlier informed von der Leyen that Bratislava would not provide Ukraine with military aid. Before the EU summit, he said that he would not support sanctions against Russia if they hurt Slovakia in the same way as those adopted earlier.
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