EU leaders struck a deal on Friday (December 19, 2025) to provide Ukraine a €90-billion loan to plug its looming budget shortfalls — but failed to agree on using frozen Russian assets to come up with the funds.
The middle-of-the-night agreement reached at summit talks in Brussels offers Kyiv a desperately needed lifeline as U.S. President Donald Trump pushes for a quick deal to end Russia's nearly four-year war.
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"Today's decision will provide Ukraine with the necessary means to defend itself and to support the Ukrainian people," European Council head Antonio Costa, who chaired the summit, said.
After scrambling around for a solution, EU leaders settled on coming up with a loan for the next two years backed by the bloc's common budget.
