How can the EU support Ukraine
– without being in agreement?

Ukraine’s public finances are on the brink of collapse, and EU member states are unable to finalise the €90 billion loan. In this webinar, Ditte Sørensen (Think Tank Europa), Ilke Toygür (IE University) and Valentin Kreilinger (SIEPS) discuss the various options that have been put forward to resolve the issue of consensus in the EU’s foreign and security policy.

In December 2025, 24 of the EU’s member states decided to jointly support Ukraine with a loan of €90 billion, secured against the EU’s long-term budget. Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary chose to opt out of the decision, and the EU invoked enhanced cooperation under Article 20 of the Treaty of Lisbon. However, ahead of the European Council meeting on 19–20 March, Hungary blocked a necessary unanimous decision to use the so-called headroom of the EU budget for the loan due to disputes with Ukraine over a damaged oil pipeline.

This seminar discusses and explores the EU’s possibilities to overcome disagreement at a time of unprecedented security challenges, and how various coalitions of willing states are increasingly shaping the EU’s current policy landscape.

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