EU disburses first tranche of military aid for Ukraine

The European Union has released the first €3.2 billion tranche of military funding for Ukraine under its €90 billion support program for 2026–2027, below the previously expected €9.1 billion.

The announcement was made by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at a conference in Gdańsk, with her remarks broadcast by the European Commission's press service.

“Today we [EU] are transferring the first tranche under this loan,” von der Leyen said, adding that it amounts to €3.2 billion in macro-financial assistance.

She had originally been expected to announce an additional €5.9 billion under the same program for drone production. However, according to sources cited by Euractiv, the European Commission decided to delay the disbursement for several days while finalising oversight mechanisms to monitor the use of the funds.

The Commission requires Ukraine to use the financing primarily to purchase drones and components from European defence industry manufacturers. Procurement from third countries is permitted only when the required military equipment is unavailable within Europe.

By Jeyhun Aghazada