Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky delivers a speech after receiving the International Four Freedoms Award during the Roosevelt Foundation's International Four Freedoms Awards ceremony in Middelburg on April 16, 2026. NICOLAS TUCAT / AFP
EU leaders will welcome Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday, April 23, in Cyprus to celebrate the release of a €90 billion ($105 billion) loan for Kyiv after a prolonged deadlock.
Preliminary approval for the badly needed money came on Wednesday but a definitive sign-off is expected by Thursday, before European Union leaders hold talks with Zelensky in Cyprus's Ayia Napa marina.
The funds were blocked after a bitter row broke out between Hungary's nationalist premier Viktor Orban and Zelensky. Orban said he would only lift his veto after Ukraine fixed a pipeline damaged by a Russian strike. After 16 years in power, Orban suffered a crushing election defeat to pro-EU opposition figure Peter Magyar in an election this month. The standoff was resolved when Zelensky said Tuesday repairs had been completed and officials said the next day that Ukraine had restarted pumping oil to Hungary and Slovakia.
Subscribers only
