European Union leaders have struck a late-night deal to lend Ukraine €90bn (£79bn; $105bn) over the next two years, after failing to agree on using frozen Russian assets.
Ukraine was set to run out of cash by next spring, and European Council chief António Costa said the loan would be paid back only when Russia paid reparations for its full-scale war.
We committed, we delivered, said Costa, while Ukrainian Prime Minister Yuliya Svyrydenko praised the deal as a decisive step for economic resilience.
A bid to use €210bn in Russian cash frozen in the EU, mainly in Belgium, ultimately failed as leaders could not convince Belgium's prime minister his country would be protected from Russian retaliation.
The bulk of the cash is held by Brussels-based Euroclear and interest from the frozen assets is already being paid to Ukraine. Russia has already launched legal action against the clearing house.
Russian President Vladimir Putin accused EU leaders of attempted robbery on Friday and Kirill Dmitriev, his envoy in talks with the US, claimed their failure to agree on using the assets was a fatal blow.
However, Belgium's Bart De Wever said the deal eventually agreed after almost 17 hours of negotiations was a victory for Ukraine, a victory for financial stability... and a victory for the EU. EU leaders had avoided chaos and division, he added.
Ukraine needs an estimated €137bn over the next two years to cover both its military and its public services, and the EU plan is to cover two-thirds of that.
The €90bn that the EU will raise on the capital markets as part of the loan deal will be backed by EU budget headroom - the margin between actual EU contributions by member states in a year and the maximum the European Commission can spend as part of the budget.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed gratitude to European leaders for the significant support that truly strengthens our resilience.
Germany's Friedrich Merz had been a strong supporter of the plan to use Russia's frozen assets. Although the idea has not been dropped, the decision to borrow the money against the EU budget instead is seen as a setback for him. Nevertheless, he declared that it sends a clear signal from Europe to Putin.
Two countries, Hungary and Slovakia, refused to back the compromise deal, while the Czech Republic stated it would not guarantee the loan.
Hungary's Viktor Orban, seen as Vladimir Putin's closest partner in the EU, has opposed handing any more money to Ukraine, arguing it prolongs the war, and he has condemned the deal.
It looks like a loan, but the Ukrainians will never be able to pay it back, Orban told reporters. It is basically losing money.
Slovakia's Robert Fico refused to back more funding to allow Ukraine to continue its defence against Russia.
As negotiations continue, the EU summit emphasized the importance of collaboration and support for Ukraine while mitigating potential backlash from Russia.
