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Zelensky Rejects Salary Freeze Reports, Orbán Scorned as ‘Putin Ally’ Over Blocked EU Loan

Zelensky says Ukraine is still paying troops and state workers despite Hungary blocking a major EU loan, as critics accuse Orbán of aiding Moscow’s agenda.

Kyiv Post

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31 mars 2026

4 min read

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President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday rejected reports that Ukraine may have to suspend salary payments for soldiers and state workers because of a blocked European Union loan, AFP reported. He warned that the delay poses a serious risk to preparations for next winter.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, considered by many to be an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has blocked a proposed €90 billion ($103 billion) EU loan package for Ukraine ahead of Hungary’s national election on April 12. The first €45 billion tranche had been expected this year, but the funding remains stalled.

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“Today, salaries are being paid, the army is funded, and pensions are being disbursed. Everything is paid,” Zelensky told a press conference in Kyiv.

Still, Ukraine is heavily reliant on the package, with €60 billion earmarked for military spending in 2026-27 as it continues to fight off Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Bloomberg reported on Friday that Ukraine may not have enough funds to cover government expenses beyond June. Alongside the blocked EU loan, Ukraine’s parliament has yet to approve measures needed to unlock further International Monetary Fund support, while a NATO appeal to buy more arms for Ukraine has fallen short of expectations.

The standoff has also fueled broader alarm in Europe and Washington over Orbán’s posture toward Ukraine and his increasingly disruptive role inside the EU and NATO.

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Sven Biscop, director of the Europe in the World program at the Egmont Institute, told Kyiv Post on Friday that Orbán’s government was using anti-democratic methods to preserve its grip on power.

“It’s clear that the government of Viktor Orbán uses many undemocratic measures to try to stay in power,” Biscop said. “And I think all democrats across Europe can only hope that the democratic opposition wins the elections.”

Biscop argued that the deeper problem is structural.

“The current Hungarian leadership behaves almost like Russian agents,” he said. “This is, of course, a weakness in the European system: Once you are a member, it has proven very difficult to take measures against a member state government that goes back on its democratic commitments. Because a lot of our foreign policy decision-making still requires unanimity, that creates immense problems.”

Paul Goble, a longtime analyst of Russian and Eurasian affairs, told Kyiv Post that Orbán was effectively advancing Moscow’s interests from within Western institutions.

“Orbán is acting as Vladimir Putin’s ally within NATO and within the EU,” Goble said. “What he’s doing is what the Russian government very much hopes will happen.”

Goble said Orbán’s obstruction of aid to Ukraine fit a broader pattern.

“Mr. Orbán has done all kinds of things blocking efforts by the EU to provide greater assistance to Ukraine,” he said. “So this is not surprising. Using the oil and gas weapon is something that the Russians have used for a very long time, and Mr. Orbán is playing their game.”

Commenting on Orbán’s rhetoric accusing protesters of acting as Western puppets, Goble said the language closely mirrored the Kremlin’s standard line.

“It is exactly what you would expect a Russian ally to say,” he said.

“What we’re hearing from Mr. Orbán is simply a restatement of what you’d expect a Russian diplomat to say,” Goble added. “Mr. Orbán has demonstrated that he’s quite prepared to echo exactly what Moscow would like to hear.”