The EU Member States at an informal summit adopted the final key piece of legislation underpinning a €90 billion EU loan to Ukraine, allowing the Commission to begin disbursements as soon as possible in the second quarter of 2026.
The loan will help cover the country’s most urgent budgetary and defence industrial capacity needs in 2026 and 2027, within a robust and conditional framework. Funding will be linked to strict conditions on Ukraine’s side such as adherence to the rule of law, including the fight against corruption.
The amendments to the EU regulation on the multiannual financial framework adopted by the EU Council confirm that the Ukraine support loan will be financed through EU borrowing on the capital markets and will be backed by the EU budget headroom. The loan is to be repaid by reparations due by Russia to Ukraine.
The Council already adopted on 24 February the regulation establishing the Ukraine support loan itself, as well as a regulation allowing funds to flow through the Ukraine Facility – the EU’s dedicated instrument for providing Ukraine with stable and predictable financial support. The Ukraine support loan regulation was agreed under the enhanced cooperation procedure with the participation of 24 member states.
The financing will help strengthen the European and Ukrainian defence industries. It will be made available in two ways, and with the following indicative break-down:
- €30 billion for macroeconomic support to Ukraine, channelled via macro-financial assistance or through the Ukraine Facility. This can be used to address Ukraine’s most urgent budgetary needs.
- €60 billion for Ukraine’s capacity to invest in defence industrial capacities, including procurement of defence products. The funding will give Ukraine crucial and timely access to defence products from the defence industries in Ukraine, the EU, EEA-EFTA countries, as well as other third countries. Those third countries need to have either concluded a bilateral agreement with the Union under the SAFE regulation (the EU’s financial instrument to help member states invest in defence) or demonstrated fulfilment of specific conditions and commitments.
Furthermore, targeted derogations may apply should Ukraine’s military needs require urgent delivery of a defence product not available in Ukraine, the EU, EEA-EFTA countries or those third countries.
Disbursements will be made accessible in line with Ukraine’s financing needs, determined by a financing strategy prepared by Ukraine itself.
After the positive assessment of Ukraine’s strategy, the Commission submitted on 1 April 2026 a proposal for a Council implementing decision approving that positive assessment of the Ukrainian Financing Strategy and making the financial and economic assistance available to Ukraine.
This Council implementing decision, also adopted today, sets out that €45 billion should be made accessible to Ukraine to assist in implementing the Ukraine Financing Strategy in 2026, with the following distribution: €8.35 billion through macro-financial assistance, €8.35 billion through the Ukraine Facility, and €28.3 billion to support Ukraine’s defence industrial capacities.
The Council Implementing decision was adopted with the support of all 24 member states participating in the enhanced cooperation.
