October 22, 2025

BRUSSELS ― European countries haven't yet agreed whether to give Ukraine a €140 billion loan to buy weapons to fight Russia — but that's not stopping them from debating what strings to attach to it.

One idea, pushed by the EU's three biggest countries, is to ensure that loan money spent on weapons flows back as much as possible into the EU's defense sector — and not across the Atlantic.

Tensions are expected to sharpen during a meeting of EU leaders in Brussels on Thursday, where prime ministers and presidents aim to task the Commission with putting forward a legal proposal outlining the loan.

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