Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on June 12 that his country would no longer veto support for Ukraine.
At a joint press conference with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Budapest, it was announced that neither Hungarian funds nor personnel would feature in future EU aid to Ukraine.
The move comes just as Hungary is set to take over the rotating EU presidency in July.
The Hungarian Prime Minister had been hinting at “redefining” his country’s NATO membership over the bloc’s Ukraine policy. Budapest’s declared military neutrality regarding Russia had been compromised by NATO rules and aid plans, it was said.
Kyiv will now receive more than €6 billion for weapons and ammunition.
Despite the latest agreement, Budapest will continue to participate in the $50 billion financial support deal agreed with Ukraine at a European Council meeting at the end of last year.
At the NATO level, the Hungary opt-out is not new. Turkey was allowed to opt-out from participating in the alliance’s operations in Libya in the war against Colonel Gaddafi, led by then-French president Nicolas Sarkozy.
