Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has "betrayed" the European Union by backing away from a prior agreement on granting Ukraine a €90 billion EU loan and is using the situation around Ukraine in his election campaign.

Hungary will not unblock any decision favourable to Ukraine until the flow of Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline is restored.

Belgium supports increasing pressure on Russia and backing Ukraine, but would like the European Union to be at the negotiating table with Moscow on a future peace settlement.

Former combatants who have taken part in Russia's war against Ukraine pose a threat to the European Union's internal security, and the EU must address this issue.

A sentence linking the repair of the Druzhba oil pipeline to a €90 billion EU loan for Ukraine and the EU's 20th sanctions package against Russia has been removed from a joint statement.

Paula Pinho, Chief Spokesperson for the European Commission, has said the issue of granting Ukraine a €90 billion EU loan could be resolved even before the European Council meets on 19-20 March.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that restoring transit via the Druzhba oil pipeline, damaged by Russian strikes, will take about a month and a half.

As of 17 March, all six clusters within Ukraine's negotiations on accession to the European Union are unofficially open.

As part of continued talks on Ukraine's EU accession at the technical level (the frontloading mechanism), Ukraine received draft conditions from the European Commission on the morning of Tuesday 17 March in Brussels.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó has said as long as Ukraine blocks the transit of Russian oil to Europe via the Druzhba pipeline on Ukrainian territory, Hungary will block the provision of an EU loan worth €90 billion to Ukraine.

Kaja Kallas, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, has said ahead of a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council on 16 March that the easing of US sanctions on Russian oil sets a dangerous precedent.

The EU has decided to hand Ukraine the conditions to start technical work on three more clusters within accession talks on 17 March, meaning Ukraine will be able to hold technical consultations on all six clusters.

European Commission spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen has said that the Commission has asked Ukraine to allow the EU to send a mission to inspect the Druzhba oil pipeline.

The European Commission has said it will suspend the implementation of a €2 million grant awarded to the Biennale Foundation if Russia participates in the 2026 art exhibition.

Russia is recruiting thousands of low-income citizens in African countries, Asia and Cuba and sending them to Ukraine on false pretences to take part in combat operations alongside Russian forces.