The moves were allowed to go forward after Hungary dropped its veto of the loan on April 22.
The European Union formally approved a 90 billion euro ($105 billion) loan to Ukraine as well as a new package of sanctions against Moscow on April 23, after months of delay due to issues surrounding the Druzhba pipeline, which carries Russian oil to central Europe.
The loan is set to cover two-thirds of Ukraine’s budgetary needs for the next two years.
“Today the Council approved the final element needed to allow for the disbursement of the 90 billion euro loan for Ukraine,” Cypriot Finance Minister Makis Keravnos said in an April 23 statement.
“Loan disbursements will start flowing as soon as possible, providing vital support for Ukraine’s most pressing budgetary needs. The EU remains steadfast in its support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Cyprus currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Council, which changes every six months.
Economists had warned Kyiv would start to run out of money by June without the EU loan, requiring the government to make deep cuts to public services.
Hungary had maintained a veto over the loan and sanctions package, after Russian oil flows stopped in January, with the government in Budapest accusing Ukraine of deliberately holding up oil supplies.
Kyiv always denied the allegations, maintaining that it had been working to repair the damage as quickly as possible and that the damage was caused by a Russian drone strike.
April 22 saw Hungary, which will soon be under a new government following an election earlier this month, lift its veto, after flows resumed through the Druzhba earlier that day.
On April 23, it was confirmed that the first flows of oil via the 2,485-mile-long pipeline had arrived in Hungary and Slovakia, which had also expressed concerns about the slow speed of repairs, but stopped short of actively vetoing the loan.
“Crude oil deliveries via the Druzhba pipeline system have thus resumed to Hungary and Slovakia after a hiatus of nearly three months,” Hungarian oil group MOL announced in a statement.
The news of the release of funds comes ahead of an informal summit of EU leaders in Cyprus, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will attend.
By Guy Birchall
