WICKLOW, Ireland, Sept 1 (Reuters) - A significant number of European Union member states support bringing forward the disbursement of funds under an EU loan to Ukraine to help its war effort, Ireland's defence minister said on Tuesday after hosting a meeting of EU colleagues.
Ukraine relies heavily on foreign funds in its fight against Russia, now in its fifth year, including a €90 billion loan that the EU agreed to disburse over the course of 2026 and 2027.
New Ukrainian defence minister Yevhenii Khmara, who addressed EU ministers via video link at an informal gathering in Ireland, said on Sunday he would ask to bring forward part of the €45 billion in payments scheduled for next year.
"What I think was very clear from our presentation from the (Ukrainian) defence minister is that there is a gap. So I do believe that there was a significant number of member states that supported that ask," Ireland's Helen McEntee told a press conference.
As the gathering was informal, ministers were not in a position to make any formal decisions.
McEntee, who hosted the meeting as Ireland currently holds the EU's rotating six-month presidency, added that any frontloading of the funds would need to be agreed by EU governments and the European Commission:
"It is obviously beyond today but I think we need to advocate, insofar as possible, for bringing that forward."
(Reporting by Padraic Halpin and Conor Humphries; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
