Cabinet bows to Parliament, opens 700 million euros in extra Ukraine funding

The caretaker Cabinet is set to free up 700 million euros in extra funding for Ukraine as an initial step. The decision comes in response to a GroenLinks–PvdA motion instructing the government to allocate an additional two billion euros to Kyiv next year. Early in the new year, the Cabinet will assess how to secure the remaining money.

According to a letter to Parliament from ministers Eelco Heinen (Finance), Ruben Brekelmans (Defense), and David van Weel (Foreign Affairs), 500 million euros will be taken from the Defense Ministry’s budget. The other 200 million euros will be covered by the Foreign Affairs budget.

“By releasing funds for support to Ukraine more quickly, the Cabinet is ensuring that military deliveries to Ukraine can continue in the first quarter of 2026,” the ministers said. The Netherlands has already pledged more than 17 billion euros in support for Ukraine since the start of the war.

The ministers caution that it will be challenging to free up more funds in next year’s budget, noting that “the financial reality is that we will reach our limits next year.”

The Netherlands spends about 3.5 billion euros annually on aid to Ukraine. However, 2 billion euros from the 2026 budget have already been used this year, prompting GroenLinks–PvdA to submit a motion to top it back up. Conditions on the Ukrainian front remain difficult, and the country’s energy network comes under fire on a daily basis.

The funding is drawn from underspending within the two ministries. The Defense Materiel Budget Fund ended up with extra room this year thanks to a beneficial dollar rate and delays in multiple projects. At Foreign Affairs, the unspent amount relates to contributions that are not being used for the European Peace Facility.

During a debate two weeks ago, Prime Minister Dick Schoof ran into resistance from Parliament over the motion. Schoof argued that any decision on extra support should wait until the spring budget review, adding that other EU member states, particularly in southern Europe, needed to step up first. Parliament, however, refused to budge.