90 billion for Ukraine. The EU has given the green light

Ambassadors of EU member states have agreed to grant Ukraine a loan worth 90 billion dollars. For the funds to be transferred to Kyiv, the loan must still receive formal approval from the governments of individual member states.

The approval of the loan follows a shift in Hungary’s position, which until now had been the only member state blocking the measure. The likely reason for this change is an agreement reached between Budapest and Kyiv regarding the repair of the Druzhba pipeline. On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that the pipeline supplying Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia had been repaired and could resume operations.

Another significant breakthrough is the unanimous agreement among all EU countries on the next, twentieth, package of sanctions targeting Russia (in this case, Slovakia had also joined Hungary in previously vetoing the measure). What do the new sanctions entail? They are expected to include, among other measures, a complete ban on the maritime transport of Russian oil, replacing the current price cap mechanism imposed under previous sanctions.

The previous, 19th, sanctions package was introduced by the European Commission in September 2025. At that time, it affected nearly 120 vessels belonging to the so-called “shadow fleet.” EU regulations also targeted Russian energy companies Rosneft and Gazprom Neft, as well as several banks and the Russian cryptocurrency market.