EU delays first tranche of €90B aid package for Ukraine
Photo: European Commission spokesperson Paula Pinho (Getty Images)
The European Commission has postponed the first tranche of a €90 billion loan to Ukraine, according to European Commission spokesperson Paula Pinho.
When will funds be disbursed?
Pinho assures that the EU is not backing out of the payment, but the timeline has shifted.
"We remain committed to making the first disbursement as part of this package in the course. Of the second semester of this year, and if I may recall what the president said, she said that we will deliver on the loan one way or another," the European Commission representative states.
What has already been done
According to her, part of the preparatory work has already been completed:
- A loan to support Ukraine has been established
- Amendments were made to the Ukraine Facility program in February
- A financing strategy has been adopted—it defines the amounts, objectives, and channels for transferring funds.
What remains to be signed
Despite the progress, the EU still needs to prepare three documents:
- A Memorandum of Understanding, which will serve as the basis for the macro-financial assistance channel
- An updated Ukraine Plan—the basis for the Ukraine Facility program, through which budgetary support will be provided;
- A loan agreement with Ukraine.
Pinho noted that work on all three documents is ongoing, and contacts with Ukrainian colleagues are maintained on an ongoing basis.
The election victory in Hungary of Péter Magyar, leader of the Tisza party, does not mean the loan will automatically be released.
He stated that he was ready to discuss the issue with European leaders, but the decision was actually adopted by the European Council back in December, and at that time, Hungary, Slovakia, and Czechia were granted the right not to join the program.
Even if Budapest withdraws its objections, Bratislava is next. Slovakia and its Prime Minister, Robert Fico, have not yet changed their position.
Added to this is the usual bureaucratic red tape: forming a new Hungarian government will take time in and of itself.
