https://www.live-feeds.com/feed/german-chancellor-merz-threatens-to-block-eu-budget-unless-four-holdouts-hungary-slovakia-bulgaria-and-the-czech-republiContinuously updated, source-cited coverage. https://www.live-feeds.com/feed/german-chancellor-merz-threatens-to-block-eu-budget-unless-four-holdouts-hungary-slovakia-bulgaria-and-the-czech-republihttps://www.live-feeds.com/feed/german-chancellor-merz-threatens-to-block-eu-budget-unless-four-holdouts-hungary-slovakia-bulgaria-and-the-czech-republi#u199796Sat, 14 Nov 2026 03:15:29 +0000German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has warned he will block the EU's long-term budget unless all member states agree to fund Ukraine, singling out Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and the Czech Republic as holdouts. The ultimatum links approval of the bloc's next multiannual financial framework to unanimous support for Ukraine assistance. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has denounced the move as blackmail, while European Council President Antonio Costa is seeking to reassure Merz and defuse the standoff. The confrontation risks paralysing EU budget negotiations and deepening east-west di