The Belgian prime minister held separate talks with the Ukrainian president and the German chancellor on Tuesday ahead of an extraordinary European Union (EU) summit to try to unblock €50 billion in aid that had been vetoed by Hungary.
“The EU will continue to expand its support for Ukraine,” assured Alexander De Croo via social network X after discussing with Ukrainian head of state Vladimir Zelensky “the way forward” in supporting Kyiv.
De Croo, whose country holds the presidency of the Council of the European Union this term, said Brussels and Kyiv would continue to bring their economies and peoples closer together “as Ukraine progresses towards membership” of the EU.
The EU heads of state and government managed to give the green light at the December summit to the start of accession negotiations for Ukraine thanks to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who agreed to leave the room during the vote.
“We are on your side, now and in the future,” the Belgian Prime Minister emphasized to Zelensky.
The Belgian official then called Olaf Scholz to prepare with the German chancellor the next extraordinary meeting of EU heads of state and government, after no agreement was reached in December to revise the community’s $50 billion multi-year budget until 2027. euros for Ukraine, which were blocked by Hungary.
De Croo and Scholz agreed to maintain their “unwavering support” for Ukraine and exchanged information on work ahead of the Belgian presidency ahead of the June 6-9 European elections.
According to a statement from De Croo’s office, the two European leaders agreed that improving the competitiveness of the EU single market and industrial competitiveness was a priority.
Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olga Stefanishyna warned today that the survival of her country, which has been fighting a Russian invasion since February 2022, depends on whether the EU can greenlight this 50 billion euro support.
Speaking alongside De Croo last Friday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called for progress on all fronts to “urgently stabilize” the Ukraine bailout, whether by convincing Budapest or through the “Plan B” Brussels is finalizing to overcome Hungary’s veto.
Since the Russian invasion began, the EU has provided Kyiv with a total of €85 billion in aid, including financial, emergency, humanitarian and military assistance.
Russia’s military offensive into Ukraine has caused what the United Nations says is the worst refugee crisis in Europe since World War II (1939-1945) and has claimed a large number of casualties, not just military personnel, but also military personnel over the past 22 months. and civilians who cannot be counted while the conflict continues.
Ukraine’s Western allies have supplied weapons to Kyiv and approved successive packages of sanctions against Russian interests in an attempt to reduce Moscow’s ability to finance the war effort.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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