Hungary blocks €20B for Ukrainian army

Hungary has opposed an EU attempt to create a long-term fund of up to €20 billion to support the Ukrainian army.

That's according to Politico, Ukrinform reports.

During a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on the formation of a fund for long-term support of the Ukrainian military, Hungary said it would block its creation until Ukraine removes the Hungarian bank OTP from the list of war sponsors.

"We cannot negotiate about new financial EPF commitment before OTP is solved," said Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto.

As of today, the EU has allocated about €4 billion for the military fund after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but officials are seeking to create a more stable source of funding to avoid difficult negotiations on the allocation of funds, the report said.

Earlier on June 26, Hungary did not support the allocation of the next tranche of €500 million from the European Peace Facility of the EU member states because of Ukraine's inclusion of the Hungarian OTP Bank in the list of "war sponsors" in March this year.

As reported, the EU foreign ministers on Thursday during a meeting in Brussels discussed the possibility of allocating €5 billion in annual military aid to Ukraine from the European Peace Facility over the next 4 years.