EU Member States agree on significant additional funding for Ukraine

In a meeting that began on Thursday 18 December, the EU leaders reached an agreement on significant additional funding for Ukraine. In line with the agreement, the European Council will provide a EUR 90 billion loan to Ukraine for 2026 and 2027.

The decision will secure Ukraine’s financing needs for the next two years. The Union will borrow funds from the capital markets backed by the EU budget headroom. Ukraine will not be required to repay the loan until it receives reparations from Russia. The leaders of 24 EU Member States agreed to provide the loan – Hungary, Czechia and Slovakia were able to opt out of the decision based on enhanced cooperation under Article 20 of the TEU. The EU is also continuing its preparations for the Ukraine reparations loan. 

“The most important thing is that this solution will secure funding for Ukraine over the next two years. This was also Finland’s top priority. Another positive thing is that the frozen Russian assets will remain frozen and will serve as a last resort for repaying the loan. In other words, Russia will be paying for it,” said Prime Minister Petteri Orpo.
 
At the start of the meeting, the leaders were joined by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for a discussion on the status of the Ukraine peace process. President Zelenskyy, who met with the leaders in Brussels, briefed the Council on the status of the peace talks and the situation on the front. 
 
The European Council also discussed security and defence throughout Europe. In this context, Prime Minister Orpo passed on greetings from the Eastern Flank Summit, which was convened on 16 December in Helsinki at his invitation, and highlighted its outcomes.
 
“It is very valuable that the Council conclusions welcome the Eastern Flank Summit held this week in Helsinki. The summit is mentioned as an example of an initiative to ramp up Europe’s defence readiness,” said Prime Minister Orpo.
 
The EU leaders also discussed the next multiannual financial framework, which will serve as the Union’s long-term budget for 2028–2034, as well as the impact of the geoeconomic situation on the EU's competitiveness. The other topics on the agenda were the Middle East, EU enlargement, migration, the pact for the Mediterranean, the fight against disinformation and information manipulation and interference, and the fight against antisemitism, racism and xenophobia.
 
The European Council was preceded by the EU-Western Balkans summit, which Prime Minister Orpo was unable to attend due to illness. The Prime Minister of Sweden represented Finland in his place.
 
Inquiries: Tuomas Tikkanen, Senior Adviser to the Prime Minister in European Affairs, tel. +358 40 523 5768, Minna Kivimäki, State Secretary for EU Affairs, tel. +358 295 160 431, and Anne Sjöholm, Head of Communications for EU Affairs, tel. +358 40 537 0733, Prime Minister’s Office