EU Disburses First €3 Billion Tranche of €90 Billion Loan to Ukraine, Pledging Long‑Term Support

WARSAW, Poland – The European Union has released the first €3 billion tranche of a €90 billion loan package for Ukraine, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced Thursday at the opening of a post‑war recovery conference in Poland.

The gathering, which includes prominent European figures such as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, serves both as a fundraiser and a signal to Russia that Ukraine’s Western allies remain committed to supporting the country over the long term.

“We are compelled to innovate in order to survive, and this has become our superpower,” Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko remarked, expressing gratitude for the pledges of support to her war‑torn nation.

Ursula von der Leyen reaffirmed the European Union’s financial commitment to Ukraine, coming just days after Kyiv formally launched its EU membership negotiations on 15 June.

She noted that since Russia’s full‑scale invasion began in February 2022, EU member states have delivered €200 billion ($225 billion) in economic, financial and military aid to Ukraine, and have approved an additional €90 billion ($101 billion) over the next two years as an EU‑backed loan.

A further €6 billion ($6.7 billion) tranche earmarked for drone production will be disbursed “in the coming days,” she added.

Separately, European leaders meeting in Gdansk announced the launch of a European equity fund aimed at investing in strategic sectors of Ukraine’s economy.

“With an initial public package of up to €220 million, we are building the confidence and risk‑sharing mechanism that private investors need to engage now,” said Friedrich Merz. The initiative, which originated at last year’s recovery conference in Rome, is backed by the EU, Germany, Poland, Italy and France.

He emphasized that while public funding alone will never suffice to rebuild Ukraine, “by investing now and committing long‑term capital, Europe is sending a clear message: we believe in Ukraine’s future within the European family.”

Ukrainian officials expect to sign 160 agreements worth more than €10 billion ($11.2 billion) during the conference in Gdansk, Svyrydenko announced on Thursday.

Svyrydenko headed the delegation after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy withdrew only days earlier, citing a dispute with Polish President Karol Nawrocki over historical issues from World War II that have strained bilateral ties.

Karol Nawrocki stripped Zelenskyy of Poland’s highest state honor this month, contending that Zelenskyy had named a military unit after a Ukrainian paramilitary group accused of massacring Poles during the conflict.

The Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) fought for Ukrainian independence against both Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. However, Poland accuses the group of murdering tens of thousands of Poles, primarily in the Nazi‑occupied regions of Volhynia and Eastern Galicia, labeling the events as genocide.

Zelenskyy has since returned the award to Poland, and other Ukrainian officials have done the same.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk suggested that Zelenskyy’s absence could help ease tensions, and Svyrydenko made no mention of the dispute in her remarks. “We can only build the future on the basis of truth, mutual respect and understanding the past,” Tusk declared.

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