Hungary Lifts Veto on €6.6 Billion EU Military Aid Reimbursement for Ukraine

Hungary's new government, led by Prime Minister Péter Magyar, has lifted its two-year veto on partially reimbursing EU member states for arms transferred to Ukraine. This decision, announced on June 1, immediately unblocks €6.6 billion in delayed payments from the European Peace Facility (EPF) and clears the way for over €40 billion in queued claims.

The EPF is an off-budget EU instrument that compensates member states for approximately 40 percent of the value of weapons sent to Kyiv. Under former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Hungary's unanimous backing requirement allowed it to freeze the mechanism for over two years, angering major donors like Germany and the Netherlands.

This veto removal is part of a broader policy realignment under Magyar, who took office on May 9. Hungary also reached an agreement with the European Commission to unblock €16.4 billion in previously frozen EU funds, entered talks with Kyiv on the status of the ethnic Hungarian minority in Zakarpattia, dropped opposition to a €90 billion EU loan for Ukraine, and signaled it will no longer block Ukraine's EU membership bid.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha urged EU governments to channel the recovered funds into the NATO-led Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) to purchase additional Patriot systems and missiles for Ukraine. Magyar met German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on June 2, indicating positive bilateral progress with Kyiv and a willingness to meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.