Merz: support for Ukraine is a “serious burden” on EU member states’ budgets

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that financing aid to Ukraine places a serious burden on European states’ budgets.

He made the statement in an interview with Bloomberg.

According to Merz, Germany, together with other European and non-European allies, is financing support for Kyiv without receiving funds from Washington for defense and military equipment.

“This is indeed a serious burden on our budgets, this is indeed a major challenge for the European Union. But we are doing it and trying to continue,” Merz said.

In September, the EU Council approved the eighth regular payment to Ukraine under the Ukraine Facility program in the amount of nearly €3 billion. This financial support program is designed for 2024–2027, with a total volume of up to €50 billion. The European Commission had warned that Ukraine risked not receiving €680 million under the program due to failure to meet two requirements in the area of anti-corruption reforms.

Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu, commenting on the EU’s decision to provide Kyiv with a €90 billion loan, stated that European countries are “definitively losing their sovereignty.”

Russian authorities are demanding that Western countries halt weapons supplies and the exchange of intelligence information with Ukraine, emphasizing that these actions will not change the course of the military operation.