Hungary sues EU over using frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine
Hungary is suing the European Union over funnelling billions of euros in interests from frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine, a case formally accepted by the European Court of Justice on Aug. 25.
The lawsuit challenges last year's decision by the Council of the EU to allocate military assistance to Ukraine through the European Peace Facility (EPF), the bloc's chief defense aid tool.
The move, implemented in February, grants Ukraine 99.7% of interest payments from frozen Russian assets, amounting to roughly 3-5 billion euros (between $3.5-5.8 billion) in support a year.
Hungary is broadly seen as the most Kremlin-friendly government within the EU and has repeatedly obstructed aid for Ukraine, sanctions against Russia, and Kyiv's accession talks.
Western countries immobilized roughly $300 billion in Russian sovereign assets at the outbreak of the full-scale war, with roughly two-thirds held in the EU.
In a lawsuit initially brought before the EU Court of Justice and later referred to the General Court, Budapest seeks to "annul the decision... regarding the allocation of the amounts to assistance measures for the supply of military support to the Ukrainian Armed Forces" and "order the defendants to pay the costs."
Budapest argues that the EPF broke the law by ignoring its veto because it is not a "contributing member state."
It may take years for the court to reach a verdict, while the EU funding could also continue under the Ukraine Facility instrument, Euronews reported. In June 2024, Hungary filed a similar lawsuit challenging an EPF decision to support Ukraine, and the case is still being heard.
The EU and its member states have provided almost $186 billion in financial, military, and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine — including $12.8 billion via the EPF — since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022.
The news comes amid escalating tensions between Kyiv and Budapest. The two countries have traded sharp rhetoric after Ukrainian drones repeatedly struck the Russian Druzhba pipeline, which also delivers oil to Hungary and Slovakia.
