The EU is releasing around 1.4 billion euros in military aid for Ukraine against the will of the Hungarian government. The planned procedure for this was approved at a meeting of foreign ministers in Luxembourg on Monday, several diplomats confirmed to the German Press Agency. This stipulates that Hungary cannot veto the decision because it is classified as a decision that can be made by majority vote.
For months, Hungary has been blocking the payment of EU funds for military aid to Ukraine. The government in Budapest justifies this with doubts about the effectiveness of the support for the attacked country and concerns about a further escalation of the conflict. In Brussels, however, it is assumed that the government is also trying to force the release of EU funds for Hungary that have been frozen due to concerns about the rule of law.
The approximately 1.4 billion euros now at stake are interest income from frozen assets of the Russian central bank in the EU. The EU had already decided in principle several weeks ago to use these for Ukraine. Due to the Hungarian veto policy, however, it was initially unclear when they could be used.
The procedure now chosen provides for the money to flow to countries such as Germany or the Czech Republic, which will then use it to provide Ukraine with air defence equipment or artillery shells in a timely manner.
According to the Commission, around 210 billion euros of the Russian central bank are frozen in the EU. The Brussels-based financial institution Euroclear recently announced that it had collected around 4.4 billion euros in interest in 2023.
The proposal for the indirect use of Russian funds for Ukraine was submitted to the governments of the EU states by EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU High Representative Josep Borrell in March. It provides that 90 percent of the usable interest income from the safekeeping of Russian central bank funds should be channeled into the EU fund for financing military equipment and training. The remaining ten percent should be used for direct financial aid for Ukraine.
