Hungary crosses Ukraine again with another EU veto
This week, the European Commission was due to finalise the seventh tranche of financial assistance for arms purchases to Ukraine. The €500 million instalment is to be paid from the so-called European Peace Facility (EPF), but now the Hungarian government has again blocked it, according to Polish press reports.
According to RMF radio, EU countries will try to put pressure on the Hungarian government, represented by Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, at next Monday's meeting of foreign ministers.
If Hungary continues to resist, European diplomats are expected to approve the package without the country's participation.
This is the second time this week that the Hungarian government has blocked EU action on Ukraine: on Wednesday, the cabinet led by Viktor Orbán indicated at a meeting of EU ambassadors that it would not support the inclusion of nine oligarchs close to President Vladimir Putin on the ban list or the renewal of previous bans in the new tenth package of sanctions against Russia. Poland has formally objected to the Hungarian request.
The European Peace Facility was created in 2020 with a budget of €5 billion (now around €5.7 billion), with funds to be distributed between 2021 and 2027. The fund is designed as a structure to provide military supplies to governments in conflict zones, particularly in Africa and the Middle East, where the EU has supported or wished to support 'peacekeeping missions'.
However, with the start of Russia's "special military operation" (ie. war on Ukraine), the funds have been redirected towards arms supplies to Ukraine. So far, some €3.5 billion worth of shipments have been paid from it. Last December, the EU Council approved an increase of €2 billion in the facility's funding ceiling for 2023.
Cover photo: Getty Images
