- By Jaroslav Lukiv
- BBC News
December 15, 2023, 02:16 GMT
Updated 11 minutes ago
Hungary has blocked 50 billion euros ($55 billion; 43 billion pounds) in EU aid to Ukraine – just hours after reaching an agreement to start accession negotiations.
“Summary of the night shift: veto the additional money to Ukraine,” Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said after talks in Brussels on Thursday.
EU leaders said aid negotiations would resume early next year.
Ukraine is urgently dependent on EU and US funding in the fight against the Russian occupiers.
Hungary – which has close ties with Russia – has long opposed Ukraine's membership but did not veto the move.
Mr. Orban left the negotiating room for a moment in a manner that officials described as pre-agreed and constructive, while the other 26 leaders continued voting.
On Friday, he told Hungarian state radio that he had fought for eight hours to stop his EU partners from taking action but could not convince them. Ukraine's path to EU membership is already a long process, he said, adding that the parliament in Budapest could still prevent this if it wanted.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the EU's decision to start accession talks as a “victory”.
Commenting on Mr Orban's opposition to the aid, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said: “We still have some time, Ukraine will not run out of money in the next few weeks.”
“We agreed with the 26 countries,” he added. “Viktor Orban, Hungary, was not yet able to do this. I'm pretty confident we can get a deal early next year. We’re thinking about the end of January.”
At a press conference in the early hours of Friday, Mr Michel confirmed that all but one of the EU leaders had agreed to the aid package and wider budget proposals for the bloc – although Sweden still had to consult its parliament.
“We will come back to this matter early next year and try to reach unanimity,” he said.
Ukraine's counteroffensive against the Russian occupying forces stalled at the start of the winter, and there are fears that the Russians may simply be superior to Ukraine.
video caption,
Watch: Zelensky had a lively conversation with Orban in Argentina this week
Ukraine and neighboring Moldova applied to join the EU after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Both were granted candidate status last June, while Georgia was passed over at the time.
Mr Zelensky was pleased with the EU's membership announcement. “This is a victory for Ukraine. A victory for all of Europe. A victory that motivates, inspires and strengthens,” he wrote in a post on X.
Moldovan President Maia Sandu said it was an honor to share the path to EU accession with Ukraine. “Without Ukraine’s courageous resistance to Russia’s brutal invasion, we would not be here today,” she wrote.
Earlier this year, Moldova claimed that Russia wanted to take power in Chisinau.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan welcomed the EU's “historic” move to open accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova, calling it a “crucial step toward fulfilling its Euro-Atlantic ambitions.”
Chancellor Olaf Scholz praised his counterparts for their “strong show of support,” adding that it was clear that both Ukraine and Moldova belonged to the “European family.” A diplomat at the summit said it was Mr Scholz's idea to have Mr Orban leave the room so the vote could take place.
The Hungarian head of state later distanced himself from his colleagues with a video message on Facebook: “Ukraine’s EU membership is a bad decision. Hungary does not want to participate in this bad decision.”
Mr Orban has also argued that Ukraine should not receive large amounts of funding from the EU because it is not part of the union.
Earlier on Thursday, President Vladimir Putin mocked Ukraine, claiming Western support was running out: “Forgive my vulgarity, but everything is brought in as a free gift. But these freebies might run out at some point.”
Talks about joining the EU could take years, so Thursday's decision is no guarantee of Ukraine's membership.
EU candidate countries must adopt a series of reforms to meet standards ranging from the rule of law to the economy, although the EU executive has already praised Ukraine for taking more than 90% of the steps taken so far in the areas of justice and combating corruption.