Hungary blocked the transfer of 500 million euros from the EU to Ukraine

Hungary did not allow sending Ukraine is the eighth tranche of aid of 500 million euros from the European Peace Fund (EPF), writes the Italian agency ANSA.

The payment was to be made on May 22, but Budapest demanded a guarantee that EPF funds would not be used exclusively for arming Kiev in the future.

The European Peace Fund is an off-budget instrument with a total value of EUR 8 billion. Among other things, it reimburses member states up to 50% of the cost of donations for military assistance to Ukraine. The previous, seventh tranche of EUR 500 million took place in February. Hungary also initially blocked it. However, an agreement was later reached.

In December, Budapest vetoed the EU’s decision to allocate €18 billion in the aid package for Ukraine for 2023. EU members regarded the actions of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban as blackmail.

“Orban abuses his veto like no one else. In fact, he is taking hostages from funds earmarked for Ukrainian hospitals,” said MEP and rule of law negotiator Daniel Freund.

Orban has repeatedly criticized the European Union for sanctions against Moscow aimed at preventing a continuation of the war. In January, Hungary demanded the removal of nine Russians from blacklists, including billionaires Alisher Usmanov, Pyotr Aven and Viktor Rashnikov, and in February blocked a joint EU statement on the arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin.

Hungary is 80% dependent on Russian gas and continues to buy it Russian oil via the Druzhba pipeline. However, in March Orbán said that the authorities would probably have to reconsider relations with Moscow due to “geopolitical realities”. Then Russia added Hungary to the list of “unfriendly” countries.