According to the FT, Brussels has been working to break Hungary’s blockade since Prime Minister Viktor Orbán vetoed the aid package in December. The issue is all the more urgent given that the gridlock in the US Congress means that even this country’s support for Kiev is questionable at a time when Russian attacks are intensifying.
To persuade Orbán to give up his veto, the commission is willing to give the Hungarian prime minister the option to terminate the financing deal in mid-2025, three officials familiar with the matter told the FT.
Under this potential concession, the European Union will review the four-year aid package next year when it assesses whether Ukraine still needs the money and whether it has met all the requirements to receive it. This would give Orbán the ability to veto the continuation of aid.
The European Commission is also open to annual aid checks and an “emergency brake” clause that would allow any country to raise serious concerns about aid to Ukraine at an EU summit. This would give Hungary additional veto power.
Asked by the FT whether all this would be enough to convince Orbán to give up his veto, a senior Hungarian official said: “I’m not sure yet, but most likely I would say yes.”
A source told the FT that the Hungarians “are in the mood to negotiate”.
Hungarians had already had the idea that the aid package could be revised in mid-October, but European Union leaders were against it, because this would not give Ukraine certainty of financial support.
Making concessions to Hungary to free up aid to Ukraine from the European Union budget is still considered preferable to alternative deals that would require the creation of complex structures to bypass Hungary.
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2024-01-12 08:32:47
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