gotchanewsdaily.com 
The loan would be repaid entirely using the windfall profits generated by over $250 billion of Russian assets that were immobilized across Western countries after Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Europe has more skin in the game as it holds most of the funds.
And timing is everything. Washington insists that the EU needs to extend the sanctions renewal timeframe to at least 36 months. Under current rules, the EU’s sanctions come up for renewal every six months, which increases the likelihood of a single country unfreezing the assets — which would force national governments to tap into taxpayers’ money to repay the loan.
While every other leader is in favor of extending the sanctions rollover period to 36 months as requested by the U.S., Orbán refuses. According to the EU’s own rules, all 27 member countries need to approve any changes to the sanctions rules.
Ukraine urgently needs fresh funding from its Western allies to keep its state running and prepare for what is expected to be a brutal winter as Russia targets the war-torn country’s energy infrastructure.
And now, thanks to Orbán, the U.S. is unlikely to participate substantially. Still, Europe is likely to go ahead anyway.
“If we don’t work this out [by extending the sanctions duration] it will cost the EU — including Hungary — more money,” said one EU diplomat, who, like others quoted, was granted anonymity to speak openly about the matter.
