Jordan Bardella votes in opposition to, and attracts criticism from different camps | EUROtoday

The president of the National Rally (RN) and the Patriots group within the European Parliament, Jordan Bardella, voted in opposition to the 90 billion euro mortgage granted to Ukraine by the European Union. Greens, social democrats, heart and proper voted in favor of this support, adopted on Wednesday February 11 with 458 votes for, 140 in opposition to and 44 abstentions, together with that of Manon Aubry (LFI).

“In the European Parliament, the National Rally and Jordan Bardella vote against the European loan to Ukraine. Without this loan, it’s simple: Ukraine collapses. Once again, they are acting as Putin’s relay and betraying the vital interest of Europe and France.”accused the social democrat Raphaël Glucksmann on Wednesday.

“To vote for Bardella is to vote for Putin!” The RN reveals it once more by voting in opposition to a brand new help bundle for Ukraine – 90 billion euros, in opposition to freedom within the face of Russian imperialism”additionally launched the centrist Pascal Canfin (Renew) on social networks, a bit of over a yr earlier than the presidential election in France.

This loan to help Ukraine face Russia in 2026 and 2027 – in particular to purchase weapons – will be financed by a loan from the European Union on the financial markets. And the interest – around 3 billion euros per year – will be paid by the European budget. This will not affect the budgetary contributions of the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia, which do not participate in this mechanism.

The arrangement provides that Ukraine will only reimburse the EU when Russia has paid it war reparations, once the conflict is over. Sixty billion euros will be used by kyiv to invest in defense industrial capacities and purchase military equipment. Thirty billion will be used by Ukraine to cover its budgetary needs, subject to reform conditions. The first payments could take place in April.

The RN contests any abandonment of Ukraine

Questioned by Agence France-Presse, RN MEP Pierre-Romain Thionnet, close to Jordan Bardella, contested any abandonment of Ukraine. The far-right party criticizes the ” meeting “ of this loan, he explained, because he sees “excessively broad exemptions” for arms purchases outside Europe. The RN also believes that the period of this loan, from 2026 to 2027, is not sufficiently circumscribed in relation to the ongoing negotiations between kyiv and Moscow.

Pierre-Romain Thionnet highlights the difficult budgetary situation of the EU and France, and criticizes this loan for being based on an assumption of repayment by Russia of war reparations, rather than on real European guarantees.