Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban threatens to block aid to Ukraine. The move could help US presidential candidate Donald Trump. About this reported the Politico.
As the publication writes, Orbán is preparing to present a "big political gift" to Trump. He invented a way to help Trump in his election campaign and get out of the 50 billion dollar loan that the US, the EU and the G7 leaders offered to Ukraine. This would let Trump off the hook, allowing him to tell voters that if elected, he "wouldn't give Ukraine a cent."
Hungary threatens not to agree to a change in the rules regarding the extension of sanctions. The US insists that the EU should extend sanctions against Russia for 36 months instead of six months. This will allow the partners to protect themselves from the fact that one of the EU countries can destroy Russian assets that will help close the loan.
European diplomats stress that if Hungary blocks the decision, it will cost the EU more money. However, as Politico points out, this is not a big price for Orbán.
"They [Hungary] don't care if Europe has to pay more. It is about helping Trump," — said an EU diplomat.
If Brussels and Washington jointly sign a loan of 35 billion euros, the re-elected Trump will be obliged to service it for years. But if the loan is approved without the US, he will have no such obligation.
While Orbán is making threats, the US has made it clear that it is considering taking part in the loan, albeit with a much smaller amount, and even if the EU fails to extend the sanctions period. This was announced by the European Commission.
One option is for Washington to contribute $5 billion, roughly equal to the amount of Russian assets frozen in the United States, and still leave Europe to pay the lion's share of the bill. It is also important that Japan has recently signaled that it may withdraw from the loan if the US does not participate.
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