EU Agrees to Provide Ukraine With New $54 Billion Aid Package

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomes European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, ahead of EU summit in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Feb. 2, 2023. Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters

All 27 leaders of European Union member states agreed on Feb. 2 to provide Ukraine with an additional 50 billion euro ($54 billion) aid package amid the country’s ongoing war with Russia.

The aid package, scheduled to be distributed from 2024 to 2027, includes 33 billion euros “in the form of loans” and 17 billion euros in “non-repayable support,” the European Council said in a statement.

“Potential revenues could be generated under the relevant Union legal acts, concerning the use of extraordinary revenues held by private entities stemming directly from the immobilized Central Bank of Russia assets,” the statement reads.

Charles Michel, president of the European Council, said in a statement on the X, formerly known as Twitter, that the aid agreement “locks in steadfast, long-term, predictable funding for Ukraine.”

“We have a deal,” Mr. Michel said. “EU is taking leadership [and] responsibility in support for Ukraine; we know what is at stake.”

The funding will help Ukraine maintain its administration, pay salaries, and pensions and provide basic public services while defending itself against Russian aggression, according to the European Commission.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pledged to support Ukraine “with the necessary funding and provide them with the much-needed predictability they deserve.”

“I am very satisfied that we got 80 percent of the funding we asked for. We had certainly some difficult choices to make, but we have a very good result,” she said in a statement.

EU Urges US to Support Ukraine

During her phone conversation with U.S. President Joe Biden on Feb. 1, Ms. von der Leyen underscored “the critical importance of sustained U.S. support to Ukraine,” according to the U.S. Embassy.

The deal overcomes weeks of resistance from Hungary and comes amid uncertainty over the future of U.S. aid. Ukraine relies heavily on Western support as the war, the biggest conflict in Europe since World War II, nears its third year.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised the EU agreement, saying the aid would strengthen his country’s long-term economic and financial stability.

“It is very important that the decision was made by all 27 leaders, which once again proves strong EU unity,” Mr. Zelenskyy said on X.

“Continued EU financial support for Ukraine will strengthen long-term economic and financial stability, which is no less important than military assistance and sanctions pressure on Russia.”

Ukraine’s dollar bonds gained on the news, and Kyiv said it expected to receive the first tranche of 4.5 billion euros from the EU in March from a total of 50 billion euros to come from the bloc’s shared budget.

Hungary’s Response

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban speaks to the media after talks at the Presidential Palace in Budapest, Hungary, on April 29, 2022. Bernadett Szabo/Reuters

The agreement comes after weeks of wrangling with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who vetoed the aid in December 2023.

On Feb. 1, Mr. Orban said he gave the green light after receiving assurances that the aid would be used sensibly and wouldn’t come from EU funds that had been earmarked for Budapest from the bloc’s joint coffers.

“We are always ready to have a good deal if we see it. And we got the guarantees we needed yesterday: control over the funds we will send to [Ukraine]. This is a god [sic] deal for both [Hungarian] and the European taxpayers,” he said on X.

The EU executive is withholding some 20 billion euros from Hungary over widespread accusations that Mr. Orban has damaged democracy at home during his 13 years in power.

Mr. Orban has had many bitter run-ins with the EU over the rule of law in Hungary and has increasingly criticized Western sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine. He has also cultivated closer ties with the Kremlin than his EU peers.

Reuters contributed to this report.