There will be "operational solutions" to unblock €50 billion for Ukraine – EU Commission President
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, has once again called for the speedy approval of a four-year, €50 billion Ukraine Facility assistance plan for Ukraine as part of the EU's mid-term budget review.
Source: Ursula von der Leyen at a press conference on the occasion of the arrival of the College of European Commissioners in Belgium
Details: Von der Leyen recalled that Russia had recently conducted large-scale missile attacks on Ukraine and that EU leaders had decided to approve the start of negotiations with Ukraine, after which the EU should urgently move forward on stabilising financial assistance to Ukraine.
Quote: "The Commission will come to the European Council with operational solutions to ensure that we can agree on the Ukraine Facility. And Belgium will then have the key task of transforming the political agreement on the facility through Council and Parliament as quickly as possible."
More details: She stressed that the Ukraine Facility is a central element of the revision of the EU's multiannual budget, and this revision should be completed under the Belgian presidency so that the EU can continue to implement other political priorities.
When asked for more details here, von der Leyen refused to disclose the meaning of the "operational solutions", but hinted that they were necessary in the absence of consensus on the Ukraine Facility, which was blocked by Hungary at the last EU summit.
Quote: "Now, important is to know that we have just released, before Christmas, the last tranche of our €18 billion support package for Ukraine for 2023. So, this will help Ukraine finance their needs for the beginning of this year. This gives us a little bit of leeway, but, of course, we have to work as hard and as fast as possible to deliver."
Background: After the December EU summit, many leaders expressed confidence that the EU would certainly make a decision on financial support for Ukraine early in 2024. In this regard, the leaders agreed to hold an extraordinary summit dedicated to this issue on 1 February.
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