EU leaders Russian assets deal

By Michael Fischer

Brussels (dpa) — European Union leaders aim to come to an agreement on using frozen Russian state assets to support Ukraine by the bloc’s next summit on December 18, following talks between German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels on Friday.

Merz once again tried to reassure De Wever that the risks from unlocking the assets frozen under EU sanctions, most of which are held by Belgium, would be shared equally among member states.

“Belgium’s particular vulnerability regarding the use of frozen Russian assets is undeniable and must be addressed in any conceivable solution in such a way that all European countries bear the same risk,” Merz was quoted as saying by government spokesman Stefan Kornelius after the meeting.

The three politicians agreed that time was of the essence in light of the current geopolitical situation, stressing the importance of providing financial support for Ukraine to ensure Europe’s security, according to Kornelius.

Merz and von der Leyen have been trying to convince De Wever for weeks to get behind a proposal by the European Commission on how to make billions in frozen Russian central bank assets available to Ukraine as a loan to cover the war-torn country’s financial needs in the coming years.

EU leaders Russian assets deal

To set up the loan, financial institutes across the EU would have to move all frozen Russian state assets – worth around €210 billion ($245 billion) – into the loan instrument.

Of the total sum, Ukraine would receive €90 billion in tranches to cover financial and military needs in the years 2026 and 2027 and an additional €45 billion would be used to repay other loans granted to Kiev over the past years, according to the commission.

Belgium, where the vast majority of the assets are held, has blocked the initiative so far for fear of Russian retaliation.

In November, De Wever wrote a letter to von der Leyen saying other EU countries would have to provide legally binding and unconditional guarantees covering the entire sum of the loan before he would be ready to agree to the measure.

The commission said the proposal included “safeguards to protect member states and financial institutions from possible retaliation measures within Russia, and from unlawful expropriations outside Russia, notably in Russia-friendly jurisdictions.”

Additionally, the commission foresees a “strong mechanism of solidarity backed by bilateral national guarantees or the EU budget.”

Rather than using Russia’s assets, Belgium has urged the EU to raise money on the capital markets to cover Ukraine’s financial needs, prompting the commission to also present a proposal on joint EU borrowing for Ukraine as an alternative.