Hungary’s Orban blocks aid for Ukraine, warns of ‘pulling the brakes’ on EU accession

Name: Ukraine says Russian strike killed over 50 in one of the deadliest attacks of the war
Uploaded: 2023-12-15T11:47:45.000Z
Duration: 3 min 42 s
Description: Ukraine says Russian strike killed over 50 in one of the deadliest attacks of the war

Viktor Orban vetoed a major EU aid package for Ukraine and warned he could still halt Kyiv’s accession to the bloc after membership talks won EU approval

Orban says he blocked the aid package to make sure Hungary gets the funds it wants from the EU budget

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Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban walks as he attends an EU leaders summit, in Brussels. Orban has a history of banking on clashes with other EU leaders for electoral benefit at home. Photo: Reuters

Reuters

Published: 7:47pm, 15 Dec 2023Updated: 12:04am, 16 Dec 2023

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban vetoed a major European Union aid package for Ukraine on Friday and warned he could still halt Kyiv’s accession to the bloc after membership talks won EU approval.

At a summit in Brussels on Thursday, the European Union’s 26 other national leaders took the historic step of agreeing to start accession negotiations with a country at war, bypassing Orban’s grievances by getting him to leave the room.

But, hours later, they could not overcome resistance from Orban, who maintains close ties to Russia, to a revamp of the bloc’s budget to channel 50 billion euros (US$55 billion) to Ukraine and provide more cash for other EU priorities such as managing migration.

European Council President Charles Michel (front right) speaks with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky (front, second from right), and Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban (pink tie), as they pose with other EU leaders for a group photo at an EU summit in Brussels. Photo: AP

The Kremlin praised Orban’s stance, which spokesman Dmitry Peskov said impressed Moscow, while criticising the EU, saying the decision to open membership talks was a politicised one that could destabilise the bloc.

Orban, who has a history of banking on clashes with other EU leaders for electoral benefit at home, told state radio that he blocked the aid package to Ukraine – part of a broader multi-year budget plan – to make sure Hungary gets the funds it wants from the EU budget.

“It is a great opportunity for Hungary to make it clear that it must get what it is entitled to. Not half of it, or one-fourth,” he said.

The breakthrough on a membership path – which also showed the limits of Orban’s power to bend EU decisions his way – came at a critical time for Ukraine with its counteroffensive against Russian invasion forces having failed to make major gains and with US President Joe Biden so far unable to get a US$60 billion package for Kyiv through Congress.

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Ukraine says Russian strike killed over 50 in one of the deadliest attacks of the war

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