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Russian frozen assets will have to be used for Ukraine at some point, Belgium’s deputy prime minister Vincent Van Peteghem said on Thursday, added however Belgium “would not take any reckless compromises” before it agreed to any deal over this.
“At some point, these frozen Russian assets will have to be used,” he said ahead of a meeting of euro zone finance ministers.
The European Commission has proposed an unprecedented use of frozen Russian assets or international borrowing to raise money which is urgently needed for Ukraine. The Commission and most EU countries prefer a “reparations loan” using Russian state assets immobilised in the EU due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
But Belgium, which holds most of the assets in the Euroclear securities depository, has raised a range of legal concerns, delaying a decision, which is now expected to be taken on Dec 18.