BERLIN — EU leaders should back Ukraine with significant extra financing this week to avoid a “double block” to support for Kyiv on both sides of the Atlantic, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte warned Monday.
“With the problems in the United States, where the fresh money is blocked, it’s quite crucial that we don’t have a double block against Ukraine,” Rutte said at the Hertie School in Berlin.
The U.S. Congress is deadlocked over fresh funding for Ukraine, while the EU is yet to come to a deal on an extra €50 billion in financing for Ukraine and over the future of the off-budget European Peace Facility (EPF), a pot of cash used to partially reimburse states for arms deliveries to Kyiv. The call is for a €5 billion one-year addition to the EPF rather than €20 billion for four years pitched earlier this year.
EU leaders meet in Brussels on Thursday and Friday to hash out a financing proposal.
But with Germany in a budget crisis and Hungary threatening a veto, the outcome of this week’s talks are still unclear when it comes to committing extra civilian and military aid to Kyiv.
“We need to agree on the money part, because that’s crucial for [Ukraine] to move forward as a state, but also with the war efforts,” said Rutte.
However, EU ambassadors failed to come to an agreement on the military aid details — along with EU membership and sanctions — during mammoth behind-closed door talks on Sunday, leaving doubts if leaders can secure a breakthrough this week.
“We won’t get an agreement,” said an EU diplomat speaking on condition of being granted anonymity.
CLARIFICATION: This article has been updated to clarify that Rutte was talking about the overall Ukraine aid package of €50 billion.
