EU agrees to unblock €90bn loan for Ukraine after Hungary lifts veto

Agreement for urgently needed loan reached after Ukraine resumed pumping Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia

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EU member states have reached agreement on unblocking an urgently needed €90bn (£78bn) loan for Kyiv and a new package of sanctions against Moscow after Ukraine resumed pumping Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia, prompting Budapest to lift its veto.

Cyprus, which holds the bloc’s rotating presidency, said member states’ ambassadors had agreed to launch “written procedures” for the final approval of the loan and the sanctions package, with formal sign-off on both due by Thursday afternoon.