MNI BRIEF: Ukraine Loan Won't Add To EU Deficits, Debt

EU member states' guarantees for a proposed EUR140bn reparations loan to Ukraine is unlikely to add to their budget deficits and debt levels, a senior EU official said Monday, although noting that a final decision would rest with Eurostat.

This had been the case with EU state guarantees for the SURE programme which supported employment during the Covid lockdown, as well as underwriting for the EU's MFA+ loans for Ukraine, the official said. 

The same senior official said that he expected that the European Commission would be able to come forward with a more formal proposal for the loan following the next EU summit - due to be held on Oct 22-24 - and that the aim was to have lending up and running by the start of Q2 2026. Brussels remains confident that the proposal does not amount to a confiscation of Russian assets. The latter reportedly remains a concern of the ECB, but the official said that they would address the central bank's concerns. (see MNI: Ukraine Loan Talks Need More Time - EU Officials )