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1. What did the European Union agree to give Ukraine, and why did it take so long?
The EU approved a $106 billion loan package to support Ukraine’s economy and military needs for two years. The deal had been deadlocked for months after then-Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban reneged on a December agreement, tying his opposition to a dispute over Russian oil deliveries to his country.
2. What broke the political deadlock between Hungary, Slovakia and Ukraine?
The breakthrough came when Russian oil resumed flowing through the Druzhba pipeline, which crosses Ukraine, after a roughly three-month halt. Ukrainian officials had attributed the pipeline damage to Russian drone attacks, though Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico disputed that account, alleging the pipeline was used as a geopolitical bargaining chip.
3. Who are the key figures at the center of this dispute?
Mr. Orban, who recently lost his reelection bid in a landslide, had repeatedly blocked EU aid to Ukraine and was the primary obstacle to the loan package. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European Council President Antonio Costa were the main advocates pushing to complete the deal.
4. What new sanctions against Russia were also approved alongside the loan?
The EU passed a sanctions package that had been prepared since February, targeting more than 40 ships suspected of being part of Russia’s shadow oil fleet, a number of banks, Russian cryptocurrency and about 60 additional entities — adding to a list of more than 2,600 Russian officials and organizations already under sanctions.
5. Why does this deal expose a broader problem within the EU?
The monthslong standoff renewed debate about the EU’s requirement for unanimous votes on key decisions, which allows individual member states to hold the entire bloc hostage to national interests. Several senior EU officials have recently called for shifting to majority voting to prevent similar deadlocks in the future.
READ MORE: EU approves a $106 billion loan package to help Ukraine after Hungary lifts its veto
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