EU leaders decide to borrow cash to fund Ukraine’s defence rather than use frozen Russian assets, diplomats said.
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European Union leaders have agreed to provide Ukraine with a €90 billion ($105.5bn) interest-free loan to support its military and economic needs over the next two years, EU Council President Antonio Costa announced early on Friday.
The agreement was reached after prolonged overnight talks in Brussels, with leaders opting to raise the funds by borrowing on capital markets rather than immediately using frozen Russian assets, according to diplomats familiar with the discussions.
“We have a deal. Decision to provide 90 billion euros of support to Ukraine for 2026–27 approved. We committed, we delivered,” Costa said in a social media post.
We have a deal.
Decision to provide 90 billion euros of support to Ukraine for 2026-27 approved.
We committed, we delivered.
— António Costa (@eucopresident) December 19, 2025
A draft of the summit’s conclusions, seen by Reuters, states that the loan will be secured against the EU budget. This approach avoids, for now, the more controversial proposal to directly use frozen Russian central bank assets to finance Ukraine’s war effort.
However, EU institutions will continue discussions on establishing a separate loan mechanism backed by Russian assets. Under the current agreement, those assets will remain frozen, and the EU has reserved the right to use them to repay the loan if necessary.
Ukraine will only be required to repay the jointly borrowed funds once it receives war reparations from Russia, according to the draft text.
The deal also includes exemptions for Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, which had opposed contributing to Ukraine’s financing. Their financial obligations under the agreement will not be affected.
The package underscores the EU’s long-term commitment to supporting Ukraine as it continues to defend itself against Russia’s invasion, while balancing internal divisions over how far to go in using Russian assets to fund that support.
