Ukraine to Receive First Tranche of €90 Billion EU Loan This Week

Ukraine is set to receive the first tranche of a €90 billion EU loan before summer, pending a vote in Brussels on Wednesday. This funding covers two-thirds of Kyiv’s needs to operate the state and supply its army through 2027, and it will unlock an additional $8.2 billion IMF program.

The loan was previously blocked for two months by Viktor Orbán, who lost Hungary’s April 12 election. The Cypriot presidency has listed the item as a non-discussion point for Wednesday’s vote, indicating expected passage without debate. A written procedure will finalize adoption within 24 hours. The loan is funded by EU borrowing on capital markets, backed by the EU budget, and serviced from interest on €210 billion in frozen Russian sovereign assets at Euroclear.

Orbán stated on Sunday that Hungary’s position remains «no oil = no money,» linking approval to the resumption of oil transit through the Druzhba pipeline, which was struck by Russian drones in late January. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expects repairs to be complete by the end of April. Incoming Prime Minister Péter Magyar has indicated he will not obstruct the loan, as Hungary, Czechia, and Slovakia are not participating in the €90 billion loan.

Unblocking this loan does not resolve Hungary’s broader obstruction of EU actions on Ukraine, including vetoes on the 20th EU sanctions package against Russia, Ukraine’s EU accession, and €6.6 billion in military aid. Meanwhile, Germany summoned the Russian ambassador after Russia’s Defense Ministry published addresses of German defense firms supplying drones to Ukraine, and the FSB arrested a German woman in Pyatigorsk, alleging a Ukrainian-backed plot.