Taoiseach Micheál Martin has welcomed the EU’s move to raise a €90bn loan to support Ukraine, describing it as the “price of war”, while adding that “we hope for peace” to emerge from Russia’s “devastating war”.
The Fianna Fáil leader was in Brussels yesterday for a European Council meeting with EU counterparts, where they agreed to raise a €90bn loan to fund Ukraine over the next two years, though they stopped short of approving a proposal to use tens of billions of euro in frozen Russian assets to guarantee a longer-term funding arrangement, reports RTE.
Mr Martin said the meeting was lengthy and wide-ranging but stressed that, crucially, it sent a “strong signal of solidarity to Ukraine”, reinforcing its financial stability in relation to its budgetary commitments, requirements and defence.
He said delegates heard accounts of thousands of young people being killed on the frontline each month. “I think it will be in the aftermath of the war that people will realise the enormity, the impact of death and destruction,” he said, reports RTE.
Belgium, which holds the majority of Russian assets through the securities firm Euroclear, had sought open-ended assurances that it would not face exposure if Russia were to succeed with a legal challenge against the use of its assets.
The agreement was reached in Brussels in the early hours of the morning, reports RTE.
The Taoiseach said that, in relation to the immobilised assets, Europe had taken a major decision the previous week to freeze them in the long term until Russia pays reparations.
He added that Ukraine would not be required to repay the loan it receives until Russia pays reparations, enabling the country’s reconstruction, reports RTE.
EU leaders initially examined two options yesterday to ensure Ukraine does not run out of funds in the second quarter of next year.
One option was to raise a loan on international markets backed by unused EU budget funds, while the second involved using up to €210bn of immobilised Russian assets, reports RTE.
As discussions progressed, it appeared the latter option had become the primary focus.
Technical teams worked around the clock to identify ways to provide financial guarantees to Belgium in the event of what has been described as the highly unlikely scenario of Russia winning an international arbitration case enforceable within the EU, reports RTE.
However, by late last night, those efforts had not succeeded. The alternative option was then revived – effectively joint EU debt backed by unspent funds from the seven-year budget.
That approach had seemed improbable as it required unanimous backing from all member states, reports RTE.
However, Russia-friendly states including Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic agreed they would not block the move, provided they were not required to participate in the joint debt arrangement.
Last night, EU leaders insisted that Russian assets would remain frozen and that if Russia failed to pay reparations to Ukraine after the war, those assets could be used by Ukraine to repay the EU loan, reports RTE.
The agreement, reached after more than a day of negotiations at a summit in Brussels, provides Kyiv with a vital lifeline as US President Donald Trump pushes for a swift agreement to end Russia’s war.
“We have a deal. Decision to provide 90 billion euros of support to Ukraine for 2026-27 approved,” EU chief Antonio Costa wrote on X, reports RTE.
“We committed, we delivered,” he added, reports RTE.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz had strongly advocated for the asset-based plan, but said the final loan decision nonetheless “sends a clear signal” to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The EU estimates Ukraine will need an additional €135bn to remain solvent over the next two years, with funding pressures expected to begin in April, reports RTE.
In a post on X, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was thankful to “all leaders of the European Union for the European Council’s decision on €90 billion in financial support for Ukraine in 2026–2027”.
He said: “This is significant support that truly strengthens our resilience. It is important that Russian assets remain immobilized and that Ukraine has received a financial security guarantee for the coming years.
“Thank you for the result and for unity. Together, we are defending the future of our continent,” reports RTE.
Mr Zelensky told EU leaders at the start of the summit yesterday that using Russian assets was the correct course of action.
“Russian assets must be used to defend against Russian aggression and rebuild what was destroyed by Russian attacks. It’s moral. It’s fair. It’s legal,” Mr Zelensky said, reports RTE.
While Kyiv may be disappointed that the EU did not go as far as using the Russian assets, securing funding through another route will still come as a relief.
Mr Zelensky told leaders that Ukraine needed a decision by year-end and that placing the country on firmer financial ground could strengthen its position in talks to end the war, reports RTE.
Close to the surface of the EU discussions are US efforts to broker an agreement to end the conflict.
Mr Zelensky announced that Ukrainian and US delegations would hold further talks tomorrow and Saturday in the United States, reports RTE.
He said he wanted greater clarity from the US on the guarantees it could offer to protect Ukraine from another invasion.
“What will the United States of America do if Russia comes again with aggression?” he asked, reports RTE.
“What will these security guarantees do? How will they work?” reports RTE.
Mr Trump has continued to apply pressure on Kyiv, again saying he hopes Ukraine “moves quickly” to agree a deal ahead of fresh talks expected in Miami at the weekend.
“Well, they’re getting close to something, but I hope Ukraine moves quickly. I hope Ukraine moves quickly because Russia is there,” Mr Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, reports RTE.
“And you know, every time they take too much time, then Russia changes their mind,” reports RTE.
Russia has yet to respond to the latest proposals, and Mr Putin has reiterated that the Kremlin intends to pursue its maximalist military objectives in Ukraine.
Ukraine and the United States say progress has been made on future security guarantees for Kyiv, but disagreements remain over what territory Ukraine would be required to give up, reports RTE.
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