European Union summit will focus on Iran war and a loan to Ukraine blocked by Hungary

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen delivers a statement during a media conference at EU headquarters in Brussels, Wednesday, March 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo) 2026-03-19T05:32:24Z BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union leaders are holding a summit in Brussels on Thursday for talks on the Iran war , energy prices, migration and an enormous loan for war-ravaged Ukraine being held up by Hungary. Many of those leaders have deflected entreaties by U.S. President Donald Trump to send military assets to secure the Strait of Hormuz , a key waterway for the global flow of oil, gas and fertilizer. Rising energy prices because of the war and fears in Europe of a new refugee crisis have pushed leaders to make the Middle East one of the top priorities at the summit. The European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, has floated the idea of a “toolbox” of measures to lower energy prices for leaders to discuss because no single policy will work across the myriad markets in the 27-nation bloc to blunt economic shocks from the war, according to a senior European diplomat who wasn’t authorized to be publicly named so spoke on condition of anonymity. The summit will also focus on a long-brewing standoff between Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and most other EU nations. The last EU summit was held in December at a Belgian castle, where the leaders including Orbán agreed to a 90 billion-euro ($104 billion) loan for Ukraine for help overcoming a budget shortfall in the country as it grapples with a grinding war with Russia. But a month later, Orbán backtracked after the Druzhba oil pipeline was disabled in January after what Ukrainian officials said was a Russian drone attack . The pro-Russia leader, who has held office in Hungary since 2010, is running an aggressive media campaign villainizing both Brussels and Kyiv as he seeks reelection next month. “If there is no oil, there is no money,” Orbán said in a social media post on Tuesday. To get Ukraine the much-neede

原文链接: AP News