EU defense fund unblocked, and with it new support for Ukraine

The European Union's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, announced on September 25 that a long-standing stalemate over a 6.6 billion euro ($7.5 billion) fund for Ukraine has been resolved. The European Peace Facility (EPF) was created to assist in conflict prevention and provide non-lethal aid, with its scope later expanded to include direct lethal aid due to Russia's full-scale invasion. Since 2022, Ukraine has received 11.1 billion euros ($12.7 billion) in support from the EPF.

EU Member States have agreed on the terms for releasing the 6.6 billion euro European Peace Facility funds for Ukraine, according to Kallas' social media post. The frozen EPF money has been blocked for an extended period due to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's obstruction of the reimbursement mechanism, which led to a dismissed court case on September 9.

Following Orban's departure, EU countries could not reach consensus on reimbursement amounts and rates, nor on whether the money should be rolled over into new support for Ukraine.

The 6.6 billion euros will now be divided into three parts. The largest portion, 4.7 billion euros ($5.4 billion), will reimburse EU countries for weapons deliveries they have already made to Ukraine. Several countries, including Germany and Sweden, have pledged their shares of this 4.7 billion pot for additional support for Ukraine.

EU defense ministers are set to meet in Brussels on September 28, potentially announcing more commitments. An additional 900 million euros ($1 billion) of the unblocked EPF money will bolster the EU's Military Assistance Mission for Ukraine (EUMAM), which trains Ukrainian soldiers and then sends them back to the country. Lastly, 1 billion euros of the unlocked EPF cash will finance new joint procurement of equipment.