Hungary blocked the allocation of 500 million euros in military aid to Ukraine

The Hungarian government has not approved the allocation of another tranche of military support to Ukraine, which was planned to be provided under the European Peace Fund, Reuters reports citing the press service of the government.

“Hungary does not agree that the European Union, along with other existing instruments, uses the European Peace Fund exclusively in relation to Ukraine, since this does not allow sufficient funds to be allocated to promote EU interests in other areas,” the press service said.

The Hungarian government noted that it had blocked the release of the eighth tranche of aid from the European Peace Fund in order to manifest the issues raised. Representatives of Hungary noted that the fund's resources could be used in the Balkans and North Africa.

on Hungary's decision to block the allocation of aid to Ukraine The Italian agency ANSA was the first to report , citing sources. According to them, the amount of assistance was 500 million euros.

• The European Peace Fund was established in March 2021. It is funded by contributions from EU member states. Ukraine received about 3.6 billion euros from the EU within the framework of the fund. In addition to Ukraine, the European Peace Fund financed defense assistance to a number of countries, including Georgia, Moldova, Mali, Somalia and Lebanon.
• Hungary, which is a member of the European Union and NATO, has refused to provide any military assistance to Ukraine after a full-scale Russian invasion, and has also opposed the imposition of a number of sanctions. In 2022, Hungary blocked an 18 billion euro assistance program to Ukraine. In addition, in March, Hungary blocked a joint EU statement on an international arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin.