Luxembourg Foreign Minister on Ukraine aid: It will not be easy to convince Orbán

Xavier Bettel. Photo: Facebook

Luxembourg Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel said it would be difficult to persuade Hungary to support increased financial aid to Ukraine at the EU summit on 1 February.

Source: Xavier Bettel in an interview with Reuters, as reported by European Pravda

Quote: “It’s difficult. I know Viktor Orbán well… it won’t be easy to convince him. But now we know that if we don’t support Ukraine, then who’s next to face a Russian invasion?”

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Details: Bettel added that he hoped to finalise a deal next week.

According to him, Kyiv requires both military and financial assistance.

“One is needed as much as the other. Military help, it’s (so) they are still able to have successes and not be destroyed from one day to another,” said Bettel.

The Foreign Minister of Luxembourg stated that it left a bad impression when, on the eve of the December EU summit, which required Orbán’s support for Ukraine’s accession, the European Commission unblocked €10 billion for Hungary, which had previously been frozen due to Budapest’s withdrawal from democratic principles of the Union.

“We had a difficult agreement last time. Viktor Orbán went to the loo,” Bettel said, meaning that thanks to the unblocking the said sum, Hungary avoided vetoing the decision to negotiate Ukraine’s accession to the EU, although others claim that Orbán left the room for a coffee break.

“We cannot give the impression that to have a common position means to pay (Budapest)… This is not a good precedent,” the minister is convinced.

Bettel went on to say that, in addition to providing military assistance to Ukraine, the EU should strengthen its military capabilities to ensure its own security if Donald Trump is elected president of the United States again.

Furthermore, he admitted that, despite US pressure, he was “very cautious” about the possibility of confiscating Russian frozen assets without judicial permission.

Background:

• Earlier, the media reported that EU leaders are ready to take a tough stance against Hungary if Prime Minister Viktor Orbán continues to block a €50 billion aid package for Ukraine at their summit on 1 February.
• The sources stressed that if Orbán decides to go this route, the EU could launch the next stage of punitive measures against Hungary, which could lead to the deprivation of its voting rights as a member state.
• At the same time, Bloomberg noted that such a scenario could lead to a wider confrontation, as Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has previously declared that he will defend Hungary against steps aimed at depriving it of its voting rights in the EU.
• Hungary has previously stated that it could lift its veto on the aid package, provided that the funding is reviewed annually. And, according to media reports, the European Commission is ready to accept some of Budapest’s demands.

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