European Union support for Kyiv. Soon afterwards, EU ambassadors meeting in Brussels gave preliminary approval to the loan, as well as a 20th package of sanctions on Russia, officials said. It is now expected to be signed off on Thursday. Although the funding was agreed last December, Hungary's Viktor Orbán slapped a veto on the payment in February after Ukraine said damage caused by a Russian attack had brought supplies to a halt. Ukrainian oil and government sources told officials in Hungary and Slovakia that pumping had restarted, hours after the EU ambassadors began discussing the loan. Orbán had demanded the oil start flowing again before the loan could be paid out, and Ukraine confirmed the repairs had been completed on Tuesday.

His election defeat last Sunday also cleared the air for the EU, bringing to an end his 16-year era as prime minister. Hungary's next leader, Péter Magyar, has prioritised a reset in Budapest's poor relations with Brussels. "Ukraine really needs this loan and it's also a sign that Russia cannot outlast Ukraine", EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said ahead of the ambassadors' meeting. The EU funding has been described by Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Taras Kachka as "a matter of life and death" for Kyiv, and two-thirds of it will be spent on bolstering Ukraine's defence needs while the rest will go on broader financial assistance.

Slovak Economy Minister Denisa Sakova said she had been told by energy operator Ukrtransnaft, which looks after the Druzhba pipeline in Ukraine, that pressurising of the pipeline had begun on Wednesday morning and crude oil would start flowing into Slovakia on Thursday, for the first time since 27 January. (BBC)