The European Commission (EC) expects to pay Kiev the first tranche of its €90 billion military funding program for 2026-2027 next week.
This was announced by European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Coss upon her arrival at a meeting of EU foreign ministers.
“We expect to send the first tranche as early as next week“, she said, answering a question from Ukrainian journalists about the timing of the disbursement of funds from the €90 billion program.
Russia's influence in European countries is growing thanks to its participation in international competitions as if nothing had happened, as well as at the Venice Biennale, despite pressure from the European Commission.
This was stated by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaia Kalas upon her arrival at a meeting of EU foreign ministers.
The European Commission previously announced that it had sent official letters to the organizers of the Biennale demanding that Russia be excluded from participation. In response to the refusal, the EC canceled a grant of 2 million euros for the organizers.
Kalas excluded former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder as a negotiator with Russia, confirming that EU foreign ministers will hold discussions on possible negotiations with Russia at the end of May.
„Schröder is a well-known lobbyist for Russian companies. "If he becomes an EU representative, he will sit on both sides of the table," Kallas said, ruling out the appointment.
She also said that EU foreign ministers "will discuss the possibility of negotiations with Russia at the end of May."
On May 8, it was reported that EU foreign ministers would discuss a "list of European demands for Russia" for a "possible start of negotiations" at an informal meeting in Cyprus on May 26-27.