EU formulates $22bn emergency aid plan for Ukraine, amid defiance from Hungary

Funded by debt, the financial program would circumnavigate Hungary's opposition, swiftly releasing funds for Kyiv, as per reports from the "Financial Times".

The newspaper suggests that this proposed mechanism could be enforced should the EU summit scheduled for February 1, 2024, fail to override Viktor Orban's veto.

This system echoes that utilized in 2020 when the European Commission presented EU countries with 110 billion dollars to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

The "Financial Times" underscores the importance of this mechanism, which does not require the consent of all 27 EU member states.

The program would authorize the European Commission to borrow up to 22 billion dollars from capital markets and forward them to Ukraine.

During a meeting in Brussels on Thursday, the European Council decided to initiate accession discussions with Ukraine. Hungary, however, obstructed the approval of a new EU budgetary support for Ukraine totaling 55 billion dollars.

European officials warn that further succumbing to Budapest would harm Brussels' credibility. "If we push too far in this direction, we must recognize where this will take us," a high-ranking EU diplomat stated.

Calls are emerging within the EU to reinstate the procedure from Article 7 of the EU Treaty regarding the breach of the rule of law, which may result in suspending Hungary's voting rights. Since the change in the Polish government, Budapest no longer has an ally in its corner.