EU approves a $106 billion loan package to help Ukraine after Hungary lifts its veto

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The European Union on Thursday approved a massive loan package to help Ukraine meet its economic and military needs for two years, the bloc’s Cypriot presidency said, after oil began flowing through a key pipeline to Hungary and Slovakia, ending months of political deadlock.

The EU also approved a new raft of sanctions against Russia over its war on Ukraine. The measures were prepared early this year and set to be announced in February to mark the fourth anniversary of the conflict, but Hungary and Slovakia opposed the move.

Hungary and Slovakia have been locked in a feud with Ukraine since Russian oil deliveries to the two EU countries were halted in January after a pipeline was damaged. Ukrainian officials blamed the damage on Russian drone attacks. Both countries confirmed Thursday that deliveries have resumed.

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Ukraine desperately needs the €90 billion ($106 billion) loan package to prop up its war-ravaged economy and help keep Russian forces at bay. Hungary angered its EU partners by reneging on a December deal to provide the funds.

“Today the Council approved the final element needed to allow for the disbursement of the €90 billion loan for Ukraine,” Cypriot Finance Minister Makis Keravnos said. “Loan disbursements will start flowing as soon as possible, providing vital support for Ukraine’s most pressing budgetary needs.”

“Promised, delivered, implemented,” European Council President Antonio Costa posted on social media, just hours before he was due to chair a summit of EU leaders in Cyprus, which holds the bloc’s presidency until June 30.

The political greenlight for the loan package came after Russian oil began flowing to Hungary and Slovakia again through the Druzhba pipeline that crosses Ukraine. Populist Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico welcomed that development as “good news.”

“Let’s hope a serious relation between Ukraine and the European Union has been established,” Fico said.

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Druzhba pipeline restarts Russian oil flows to Europe, unblocking $105B EU loan for Kyiv

Hungarian energy group MOL said it had “received crude oil at the Fényeslitke and Budkovce pumping stations earlier Thursday. Crude oil deliveries via the Druzhba pipeline system have thus resumed to Hungary and Slovakia after a hiatus of nearly three months.”

Ukraine and most of its European backers oppose imports of Russian oil which have helped to fund Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine, now in its fifth year. But unlike the rest of the European Union, Hungary and Slovakia still depend on Russia for their energy needs.

Hungary’s nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who was recently defeated in an election , had accused Ukraine of deliberately delaying repairs – an allegation that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denied.

Fico said Thursday he still didn’t believe the pipeline was damaged at all and alleged that the pipeline and oil “were used in the current geopolitical battle.”

The row has raised yet more troubling questions about decision-making in the EU, which can often be held hostage to national interests when unanimous votes are required. Several top officials have in recent months called for more majority voting.

The 27-nation bloc had originally intended to use frozen Russian assets as collateral for the loan. But that option was blocked by Belgium, where the bulk of the frozen assets are held.

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Europe salvages credibility with $105 billion loan for Ukraine but shelves plan to use Russian funds

In December, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia agreed not to stop their EU partners from borrowing the money on international markets as long as the three countries did not have to take part in the scheme.

But Orbán, who has repeatedly blocked EU aid to Ukraine, angered the other 24 countries by later reneging on that deal over the pipeline dispute and as campaigning heated up ahead of the April 12 election that he lost in a landslide.

The EU has also been trying since February to push through a new raft of sanctions against Russia to undermine its war effort, but Hungary and Slovakia were also blocking those measures over the oil feud.

The sanctions set up a ban on providing services, like maintenance or refueling, to ships illicitly transporting Russian oil. More than 40 ships believed to be part of Russia’s shadow fleet were also targeted.

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Oil revenue is the linchpin of Russia’s economy, allowing Putin to pour money into the armed forces without worsening inflation for everyday people and avoiding a currency collapse.

Asset freezes were slapped on around 60 more “entities” – often companies, government agencies, banks or other organizations – adding to a growing list of more than 2,600 Russian officials and entities already under sanctions, including Putin, his political associates, oligarchs, and dozens of lawmakers.

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欧盟轮值主席国塞浦路斯周四表示，欧盟批准了一项巨额贷款计划，以帮助乌克兰满足其未来两年的经济和军事需求。此前，一条关键的输油管道开始向匈牙利和斯洛伐克输送石油，结束了乌克兰数月的政治僵局。

欧盟还批准了一系列针对俄罗斯在乌克兰战争中的新制裁措施。这些措施于今年年初制定，原计划于2月宣布，以纪念乌克兰冲突四周年，但匈牙利和斯洛伐克对此表示反对。

自今年1月俄罗斯向匈牙利和斯洛伐克输送石油的管道遭到破坏，导致两国与乌克兰的石油供应中断以来，两国一直处于紧张关系之中。乌克兰官员将管道损坏归咎于俄罗斯的无人机袭击。两国周四均证实，石油供应已经恢复。

阿丽娜·斯穆特科/路透社

乌克兰急需这笔900亿欧元（1060亿美元）的贷款来支撑其饱受战争蹂躏的经济，并抵御俄罗斯军队的进攻。匈牙利违背了去年12月达成的提供资金的协议，激怒了其欧盟伙伴。

塞浦路斯财政部长马基斯·克拉夫诺斯表示：“今天，安理会批准了向乌克兰发放900亿欧元贷款所需的最后一项内容。贷款将尽快开始发放，为乌克兰最紧迫的预算需求提供至关重要的支持。”

“承诺已兑现，落实已执行，”欧洲理事会主席安东尼奥·科斯塔在社交媒体上发帖称，就在几个小时后，他即将在塞浦路斯主持欧盟领导人峰会，塞浦路斯担任欧盟轮值主席国直至6月30日。

在俄罗斯石油通过穿越乌克兰的“友谊”输油管道恢复向匈牙利和斯洛伐克输送石油后，这笔贷款方案获得了政治上的批准。斯洛伐克民粹主义总理罗伯特·菲佐对此表示欢迎，称其为“好消息”。

“希望乌克兰与欧盟之间已经建立起严肃的关系，”菲佐说道。

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“友谊”输油管道重启俄罗斯向欧洲输送石油，为基辅获得1050亿美元欧盟贷款铺平道路

匈牙利能源集团MOL表示，周四早些时候，其位于费涅斯利特克和布德科夫采的泵站已收到原油。至此，在中断近三个月后，通过德鲁日巴管道系统向匈牙利和斯洛伐克输送原油的进程已恢复。

乌克兰及其大多数欧洲支持者反对进口俄罗斯石油，因为这些石油被用来资助俄罗斯总统普京对乌克兰发动的战争，这场战争至今已持续五年。但与欧盟其他国家不同，匈牙利和斯洛伐克仍然依赖俄罗斯满足其能源需求。

匈牙利民族主义总理维克托·欧尔班最近在选举中落败，他指责乌克兰故意拖延维修工作——乌克兰总统弗拉基米尔·泽连斯基否认了这一指控。

菲科周四表示，他仍然不相信这条输油管道受到了任何损坏，并声称这条输油管道和石油“被用于当前的地缘政治斗争”。

这场争论引发了更多关于欧盟决策机制的令人担忧的问题，在需要一致投票的情况下，欧盟决策往往会受到国家利益的制约。近几个月来，多位高级官员呼吁采用多数投票制。

由27个成员国组成的欧盟最初打算用被冻结的俄罗斯资产作为贷款抵押。但这一方案遭到比利时的否决，因为大部分被冻结的资产都存放在比利时。

Stephanie Lecocq/路透社

欧洲通过向乌克兰提供1050亿美元贷款挽回了信誉，但搁置了使用俄罗斯资金的计划。

12 月，捷克、匈牙利和斯洛伐克同意不阻止其欧盟伙伴在国际市场上借款，只要这三个国家不必参与该计划。

但奥尔班曾多次阻止欧盟向乌克兰提供援助，后来又因管道争端和4月12日大选前竞选活动升温而撕毁了该协议，激怒了其他24个国家，最终他在大选中惨败。

自 2 月以来，欧盟也一直在努力推动对俄罗斯实施一系列新的制裁，以削弱其战争努力，但匈牙利和斯洛伐克也因石油争端而阻止了这些措施。

制裁措施禁止向非法运输俄罗斯石油的船只提供维护或加油等服务。超过40艘据信属于俄罗斯影子船队的船只也成为制裁目标。

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石油收入是俄罗斯经济的支柱，使普京能够向军队投入大量资金，而不会加剧普通民众的通货膨胀，也不会导致货币崩溃。

大约 60 个“实体”（通常是公司、政府机构、银行或其他组织）的资产被冻结，这使得已被制裁的俄罗斯官员和实体名单不断增加，目前已有超过 2600 人受到制裁，其中包括普京、他的政治伙伴、寡头和数十名议员。