Von der Leyen: EU summit to choose between two options for financing Ukraine

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said that today's EU summit must choose one of two options for financing Ukraine and that a decision will ultimately be taken.

Von der Leyen recalled upon arriving at the EU summit in Brussels that there are two proposals for financing Ukraine: one through the EU budget via borrowing and the other a reparations loan.

"Today, we will have the discussions about which one of the two we will use. These will be intensive discussions. For me, the most important part is that at the end of the day, we have secured the funding for Ukraine for the next two years," she said.

The European Commission president also mentioned concerns from Belgium, saying that work with the nation is ongoing day and night. "I support that if we take the reparations loan, the risk has to be shared by all of us," she said.

Meanwhile, she stressed that the decision must be taken at the summit.

"We have to find a solution today… We will not leave the European Council without a solution for the funding for Ukraine for the next two years. And [there are] two options – one of them has to be agreed in the European Council," she stated.

On Thursday, it became known that diplomats from European Union member states had reached a tentative agreement on using frozen Russian assets to provide Ukraine with a "reparations loan" in 2026-2027, but the final decision is to be taken by EU leaders at the European Council meeting.

European Pravda reported that new Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš has spoken out against a "reparations loan" for Ukraine ahead of the EU summit.

At the most recent ambassador-level talks within the EU on the use of Russian assets to finance Ukraine, Belgium said there had been no progress towards a joint solution.

On 16 December, Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that the chances of a decision being adopted or not adopted were equal.