EU allocates €5.5 million to support Radio Free Europe

The European Union has approved €5.5 million in short-term funding for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty to support its broadcasting operations in the EU's neighboring regions, including the North Caucasus and Central Asia.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas announced the decision on Monday following a meeting of EU foreign ministers.

"The ministers agreed to allocate €5.5 million to support Radio Free Europe," Kallas said.

She noted that the funding is temporary and that EU countries must still reach consensus on a long-term support mechanism.

The announcement comes after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on March 14 to scale down the operations of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), which oversees Radio Free Europe and Voice of America.

N.Tebrizli