Hungary blocks EU funding for arms shipments to Ukraine

Budapest [Hungary], December 17: Hungary has once again vetoed the European Union's (EU) allocation of 6.5 billion euros (6.83 billion U.S. dollars) to member states supplying weapons to Ukraine, Foreign and Trade Minister Peter Szijjarto announced on Monday in Brussels.
Speaking after a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council, Szijjarto confirmed on his official Facebook page that he had blocked disbursement of the funds from the European Peace Facility, citing Hungary's long-standing opposition to mandatory contributions of arms shipments.
"Hungary has not supplied weapons before, has not contributed to any arms shipments," Szijjarto said. He stressed that while Hungary would not interfere with member states funding such initiatives voluntarily, it would not support making these contributions compulsory.
Szijjarto also voiced his disapproval of the proposed relocation of an EU coordination unit to Kyiv and deploy advisors for security sector reforms in Ukraine. He called these measures "highly dangerous and escalating the conflict," highlighting the associated risks of personnel deployment within an EU framework.
Moreover, the minister rejected proposals to sanction Russia's UN ambassador and its Olympic Committee, stating, "Mixing sports with geopolitics is unacceptable."
Describing Brussels' approach as a "pro-war strategy" that ignored a "new reality" shaped by recent Russian battlefield gains and the reelection of U.S. President Donald Trump, the minister expressed broader criticism of EU policies.
Szijjarto said that the council's rejection of his government's recent Christmas ceasefire proposal was disappointing. "Not only was there no support for a ceasefire that could save lives, but many argued against it," he remarked. He stressed that halting the fighting could achieve what armaments valued at tens or hundreds of billions of euros have failed to accomplish: preventing further Russian advances.
Source: Xinhua News Agency