The European Commission has proposed this Wednesday a macro-financial assistance of 18 billion euros to Ukraine next year, a support that will take the form of loans on favorable terms and that will be conditional on far-reaching reforms on the part of Kiev, although the initiative that needs the unanimity of the 27 to go ahead already clashes with the rejection of Hungary.
«The funds will ensure Ukraine the most stable and predictable financing possible», defended the economic vice-president of the Community Executive, Valdis Dombrovskis, who at a press conference in Brussels, accompanied by the Commissioner for Budgets, Johannes Hahn, explained the details of the proposal.
Dombrovskis and Hahn said they are aware of the urgency of liquidity of the country at war with Russia to pay essential items such as salaries and pensions or water and energy, so they are confident that both the Council and the European Parliament reach an agreement that allows to launch this new instrument on time and disburse the first payment in January 2023.
The macro-financial support will be conditional on specific reforms in areas such as the fight against corruption and the strengthening of the rule of law in the country, as well as investments for long-term reconstruction.
«But we must remember that Ukraine is a country at war, we must be realistic and flexible by focusing on what is most relevant and feasible to achieve,» the EU vice-president warned, before stressing that the conditionality applied to it should be «realistic» and «adapted to the circumstances».
To go ahead, this project needs the unanimous approval of the EU-27, but the Hungarian government has already made clear this Wednesday its refusal to offer a joint loan to Ukraine and, through the Minister of the Interior, Gergely Gulyás, has warned that «there will be no decision» without its support.
Viktor Orban’s Executive is maintaining a tense standoff with its partners in the EU over access to EU funds blocked by the anti-democratic drift in Hungary, although Budapest is working against the clock on judicial reforms to lift the block’s reservations.
In this context and asked about the threat of veto, both Dombrovskis and Hahn are confident that a solution will be found to overcome the stumbling blocks with Hungary as has happened in previous difficult negotiations.
