EU leaders propose annual €50 billion debate for Ukraine to sidestep Orbán

In an EU summit decision, EU leaders will propose to include the idea of holding annual debates on a planned €50 billion aid package for Ukraine to win Hungary's support for the allocation. 

According to Reuters, in the latest version of the draft conclusions of the 1 February summit, which was seen by the agency, EU leaders say they could hold annual debates on how EU money is spent by Ukraine, based on reports from the European Commission. 

This would not give Hungary the right to veto the allocation of money, but it would be able to voice its concerns, the agency explained. 

"The European Council will hold a debate each year on the implementation of the facility with a view to providing guidance on the EU approach towards the situation stemming from Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine," the draft law says. 

According to the agency, it is currently unclear whether Hungary will agree to such a proposal, as Budapest not only demands the ability to veto money for Ukraine annually but also does not want to participate in the increased costs of servicing the EU's joint borrowings for the recovery fund. 

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has confirmed that Budapest sent a compromise agreement to Brussels last Saturday, which will unblock €50bn in EU funding for Ukraine. 

He revealed that under the compromise, he would agree to release funding to Ukraine "if you guarantee that the decision to continue sending money will be reviewed every year". In practice, this will essentially give Hungary another opportunity to hold up aid every year. 

The media reported that the EU countries do not agree with the conditions put forward by Orbán.