【弃子乌克兰】相继被美欧抛弃! EU fail to agree on €50 billion aid

EU leaders fail to agree on a €50 billion aid package for Ukraine and on renegotiation of EU budget

欧盟领导人未能就针对乌克兰的 500 亿欧元援助计划和欧盟预算重新谈判达成一致

European Council Belgian President Charles Michel delivers remarks to journalists at the end of the first day of a European Union summit at the EU headquarters in Brussels, on December 15, 2023.

欧洲理事会比利时主席查尔斯·米歇尔于 2023 年 12 月 15 日在布鲁塞尔欧盟总部举行的欧盟峰会第一天结束时向记者发表讲话。

The European Union failed to agree Thursday on a 50 billion-euro ($54 billion) package in financial aid that Ukraine desperately needs to stay afloat, even as the bloc decided to open accession negotiations with the war-torn country.

The aid was vetoed by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, delivering another tough blow to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after he failed this week to persuade U.S. lawmakers to approve an additional $61 billion for Ukraine, mainly to buy weapons from the U.S.

The start of accession talks was a momentous moment and stunning reversal for a country at war that had struggled to find the backing for its membership aspirations and long faced obstinate opposition from Orban.

周四，欧盟未能就乌克兰迫切需要的 500 亿欧元（540 亿美元）财政援助方案达成一致，尽管欧盟决定与这个饱受战争蹂躏的国家开启入盟谈判。

这项援助被匈牙利总理欧尔班·维克多否决，这对乌克兰总统泽连斯基本周未能说服美国议员批准向乌克兰追加610亿美元资金（主要用于从美国购买武器）造成又一次沉重打击。

对于一个一直在努力为其入盟愿望寻求支持 并长期面临 欧尔班顽固反对的战争国家来说，入盟谈判的开始是一个重要时刻，也是令人震惊的逆转。

Hungary’s leader decided not to veto the accession talks, but then blocked the aid package.

“I can inform you that 26 leaders agreed on the (budget negotiation),” European Council President Charles Michel said. “I should be very precise. One leader, Sweden, needs to consult its parliament, which is in line with the usual procedure for this country, and one leader couldn’t agree.”

The decisions required unanimity among the EU’s members.

匈牙利领导人决定不否决入盟谈判，但随后阻止了援助计划。

欧洲理事会主席查尔斯·米歇尔 (Charles Michel) 表示：“我可以告诉大家，26 位领导人就（预算谈判）达成了一致。” “我应该非常精确。瑞典一位领导人需要咨询议会，这符合该国的通常程序，而一位领导人无法同意。”

这些决定需要欧盟成员国一致同意。

Still, Michel, who was chairing the Brussels summit, called the start of accession talks “a clear signal of hope for their people and our continent.”

Although the process between opening negotiations and Ukraine finally becoming a member could take many years, Zelenskyy welcomed the agreement as “a victory for Ukraine. A victory for all of Europe.”

“History is made by those who don’t get tired of fighting for freedom,” Zelenskyy said.

尽管如此，主持布鲁塞尔峰会的米歇尔仍称入盟谈判的开始“对他们的人民和我们的大陆来说是一个明确的希望信号”。

尽管 开始谈判和乌克兰最终成为成员国之间的过程可能需要很多年，但泽连斯基对该协议表示欢迎，称其为“乌克兰的胜利”。这是整个欧洲的胜利。”

“历史是由那些不知疲倦地为自由而战的人创造的，”泽伦斯基说。

The financial package could not be endorsed after Orban vetoed both the extra money and a review of the EU budget. Ukraine is badly counting on the funds to help its damaged economy survive in the coming year.

Michel said leaders would reconvene in January in an effort to break the deadlock.

Orban had warned before the summit that forcing a decision on the Ukraine issues could destroy EU unity. Decisions on enlarging the EU and on a review of its long-term budget, which contains the 50 billion euros ($54.1 billion) in aid for the government in Kyiv, must be unanimous among all 27 member countries.

在欧尔班否决额外资金和欧盟预算审查后，该财政方案无法获得批准。乌克兰非常依赖资金来帮助其受损的经济在来年生存。

米歇尔表示，领导人将在一月份再次召开会议，努力打破僵局。

欧尔班在峰会前警告称，强迫就乌克兰问题做出决定可能会破坏欧盟的团结。关于扩大欧盟以及审查其长期预算（其中包括向基辅政府提供 500 亿欧元（541 亿美元）援助）的决定必须得到所有 27 个成员国的一致同意。

Orban had also threatened to veto the start of accession talks but ultimately backpedaled.

Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo called the opening of membership discussions a black eye for Russian President Vladimir Putin. “It is a very clear message to Moscow. Us Europeans, we don’t let go of Ukraine,” he said.

欧尔班还威胁要否决启动入盟谈判，但最终收回了要求。

比利时首相亚历山大·德克罗称，俄罗斯总统弗拉基米尔·普京(Vladimir Putin)的入盟讨论的开始是一件坏事。“这是向莫斯科发出的非常明确的信息。我们欧洲人，我们不会放弃乌克兰，”他说。

Orban said that his opposition remained steadfast, but that he decided not to use his veto because the 26 other nations were arguing so strongly in favor. Under EU rules, an abstention does not prevent a decision from being adopted.

An EU official, who insisted on not being quoted by name because the summit negotiations were private, said Orban was “momentarily absent from the room in a pre-agreed and constructive manner” when the decision was made.

Orban said he stepped aside since all of his counterparts were committed to putting Ukraine on the EU membership path, though their position did not change his mind.

欧尔班表示，他仍然坚决反对，但他决定不使用否决权，因为其他 26 个国家都 强烈 支持这一提议。根据欧盟规则，弃权并不妨碍决定的通过。

一位坚持不透露姓名的欧盟官员表示，在做出决定时，欧尔班“以预先商定和建设性的方式暂时缺席会议”，因为峰会谈判是私下进行的。

欧尔班表示，他辞职是因为所有同行都致力于让乌克兰走上欧盟成员国之路，尽管他们的立场并没有改变他的想法。

“Hungary’s perspective is clear: Ukraine is not ready for us to begin negotiations on its EU membership. It’s a completely illogical, irrational and improper decision” he said.

Others lauded Orban’s gesture. They had been preparing for the summit spilling over into an extra day Saturday.

“Certainly quicker than any of us expected,” Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said.

“匈牙利的观点很明确：乌克兰还没有准备好让我们开始就其欧盟成员资格进行谈判。这是一个完全不合逻辑、不合理和不正确的决定”，他说。

其他人则称赞欧尔班的举动。他们一直在为周六的峰会做准备。

“当然比我们任何人预期的都要快，”爱尔兰总理利奥·瓦拉德卡说。

“In fairness to Prime Minister Orban, he made his case, made it very strongly. He disagrees with this decision and he’s not changing his opinion in that sense, but essentially decided not to use the veto power,” Varadkar said.

“I respect the fact that he he didn’t do that, because it would have put us in a very difficult position as a European Union,” the Irish leader added.

“公平地说，欧尔班总理提出了自己的观点，而且表达得非常强烈。他不同意这一决定，从这个意义上说，他不会改变自己的观点，但本质上决定不使用否决权，”瓦拉德卡说。

这位爱尔兰领导人补充道：“我尊重他没有这样做，因为这会让我们作为欧盟陷入非常困难的境地。”

Hungary will never send weapons to Ukraine, foreign minister says

匈牙利外长表示永远不会像乌克兰提供武器

Belgium’s De Croo had a slightly different take, saying he thought Orban “didn’t use his veto because he realized that it would be indefensible.”

At the same time as Ukraine, the EU leaders also decided to open membership negotiations with Ukraine’s neighbor Moldova.

In the United States, national security adviser Jake Sullivan welcomed “the EU’s historic decision to open accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova, a crucial step toward fulfilling their Euro-Atlantic aspirations.”

比利时的德克罗的看法略有不同，他说他认为欧尔班“没有使用否决权，因为他意识到这是站不住脚的”。

与乌克兰同时，欧盟领导人还决定与 乌克兰邻国摩尔多瓦开启入盟谈判。

在美国，国家安全顾问杰克·沙利文对“欧盟与乌克兰和摩尔多瓦开启入盟谈判的历史性决定表示欢迎，这是实现其欧洲大西洋愿望的关键一步。”

In Kyiv, the news was met with cautious optimism.

“We are Europe. Ukraine is Europe, the center of Europe. I want us to be given the status of a proud member of Europe,” said Olha Paradovska, a 70-year-old Kyiv resident.

Ivan Olezhko, 19, said the decision to start accession talks was long overdue. “If everything goes well, I will be happy, but we don’t know what will happen next,” he said.

在基辅，这一消息引发了谨慎乐观的情绪。

“我们是欧洲。乌克兰是欧洲，欧洲的中心。我希望我们能够获得自豪的欧洲成员的地位，”70 岁的基辅居民奥尔哈·帕拉多夫斯卡 (Olha Paradovska) 说道。

19 岁的伊万·奥列日科 (Ivan Olezhko) 表示，早就应该做出启动入盟谈判的决定。“如果一切顺利，我会很高兴，但我们不知道接下来会发生什么，”他说。

EU leaders had expected the summit to take at least until late Friday before any sort of breakthrough might be clinched, so the fateful announcement came totally unexpectedly after Orban did not block the move by his colleagues.

A beaming Michel came down in the summit media room unscheduled and said “This is a historic moment, and it shows the credibility of the European Union. The strength of the European Union. The decision is made.”

He said the negotiations would open before a report will be made to the leaders in March.

欧盟领导人原本预计峰会至少要到周五晚些时候才能取得任何突破，因此在欧尔班没有阻止其同事的举动后，这一重大声明完全出乎意料。

笑容满面的米歇尔突然来到峰会媒体室，他说：“这是一个历史性时刻，它显示了欧盟的信誉。欧盟的实力。决定已经做出了。”

他表示，谈判将在三月份向领导人提交报告之前开始。

The surprise came at a dire time for Zelenskyy, straight off a trip this week to Washington where his pleas for more aid from the U.S. Congress fell on deaf ears. Ukraine’s president was looking for a better response in Brussels.

“It is just as important that Ukraine has the means to continue the war and rebuild its country,” De Croo said.

The urgency to find a solution is matched only by the potential blow to the EU’s credibility, the Ukrainian president said in a video address to the leaders assembled in Brussels.

“Nobody wants Europe to be seen as untrustworthy. Or as unable to take decisions it prepared itself,” he said.

这一意外发生之际，泽连斯基正值危急时刻，他 本周刚刚访问华盛顿 ，但他要求美国国会提供更多援助的请求却被置若罔闻。乌克兰总统正在布鲁塞尔寻求更好的回应。

“同样重要的是，乌克兰拥有继续战争和重建国家的手段，”德克鲁说。

乌克兰总统在向布鲁塞尔举行的领导人视频讲话中表示，寻求解决方案的紧迫性与欧盟信誉可能受到的打击相匹配。

“没有人希望欧洲被视为不值得信任。或者因为无法做出自己准备的决定，”他说。