Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that Hungary's hesitation to continue supporting Ukraine's fight against Russia poses a "threat" to the European Union's security.
Leaders of the EU settled on a $54 billion aid deal for Ukraine on Thursday, following weeks of opposition to the package by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. The deal includes support to rebuild Ukraine's economy, and sets Kyiv up for a future membership within the European alliance.
Orbán is considered Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest ally within the EU and NATO, and has previously resisted Europe's unwavering support for Kyiv. The Hungarian representative was the only leader out of the 37 EU members to reject the $54 billion deal in December and had threatened to do the same ahead of Thursday's vote.
"Today, Viktor Orbán's position is a threat to our security," Tusk said while speaking with reporters ahead of Thursday's session in Brussels. "This is unacceptable, so we need to think about the possible consequences, but maybe not today."
"Today is the moment when Viktor Orbán must see that there is no room for any games or cynical ideas," Tusk added, according to reports by Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita. "Either he is in or he is out, politically. I hope that we will be able to convince him, but we are all tired of wasting time."
Newsweek reached out to Orbán's office via email for comment on Thursday.
It is unclear why Orbán ultimately agreed to lift his veto, but French President Emmanuel Macron dismissed questions that the Hungarian leader was offered anything in exchange for his vote, telling the Associated Press (AP) that Hungary "didn't receive a gift. It simply got the guarantee that the approach toward it will not be discriminatory."
According to an EU official who spoke with AP, several small group talks between Orbán and other leaders were held in the hours leading up to Thursday's session. It was agreed upon during those meetings that the EU would review the $54 billion budget in two years if necessary, but that review would not include an opportunity to veto.
Orbán praised the aid deal in a post to X, formerly known as Twitter, writing that, "Hungary's funds will not end up in Ukraine and we have a control mechanism at the end of the first and the second year."
"Our position on the war in Ukraine remains unchanged: we need a ceasefire and peace talks," he added.
Hungary is also the last member of NATO to give Sweden a stamp of approval to join the alliance. Orbán has said that Hungary is in favor of welcoming Stockholm into the Western bloc.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Kaitlin Lewis is a Newsweek reporter on the Night Team based in Boston, Massachusetts. Her focus is reporting on national ... Read more
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