The European Union is preparing a debt-funded back-up plan worth up to 20 billion euros ($22 billion) to sidestep Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's objections and quickly release money for Kiev, Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing officials in talks.
The scheme requires EU member states to issue guarantees to the EU budget, enabling the European Commission to borrow up to 20 billion euros on capital markets for Kiev in 2024, sources told the media, adding that discussions are still underway and the final figure would be specified based on the needs of Ukraine.
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According to the article, the plan B was needed to bypass a veto imposed by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban during the recent EU summit. The scheme does not require approval of all EU members and, therefore, Budapest will not be able to veto it as well.
ReplyDeleteCertain countries, such as Germany and the Netherland, will have to approve it in national parliaments.
A decision on this plan may be made as early as during the next EU summit, due on February 1. Brussels expects that Kiev will receive the money before March 2024.