Belgium opposes EU plan to use Russian assets to support Ukraine

(CLO) Belgium has spoken out against the European Union (EU)'s plan to use frozen Russian state assets to raise 140 billion euros for Ukraine.

Most of these assets are held at Euroclear, a financial institution based in Brussels.

The European Commission has been working on a plan for months to use frozen Russian assets to fund a “compensation loan” to support Ukraine’s financial needs over the next two years. But the plan raises a host of legal questions, prompting concerns in Belgium that the risk is too great for the country and for Euroclear.

Before the Commission published detailed legal documents on 3 December, Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot said the EU proposal “does not meet the requirements” of Belgium. He said Belgium was “disappointed that it has not been listened to”, adding that its concerns “have not been adequately addressed”.

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Belgium has three demands. First, that other EU countries bear all legal costs if Russia sues over the program. Second, that they commit to immediate financial assistance if the court orders repayment to Russia. Third, that other countries holding frozen Russian assets transfer the money to Ukraine, not just Belgium.

Mr Prevot said the demands were “not impossible to meet”, but said Belgium had not yet received full support from member states.

In addition to the plan to use frozen assets, the European Commission is also considering borrowing money on financial markets, or a combination of both, to secure support for Ukraine. Borrowing money could help the EU provide assistance quickly while it continues to deal with the legal and political issues surrounding Russian assets.

The complexity has increased after the US-backed 28-point peace plan proposed that some of Russia’s assets could be put into a joint US-Russia investment fund. However, many EU countries still prefer to use Russian assets directly rather than borrow money, as the loans would eventually have to be repaid.

According to the Commission's proposal, Ukraine would only have to pay its debt if Russia compensated it for war damage. The Commission said the plan was legally sound because it did not confiscate Russian sovereign property.

A European Commission spokesman said commissioners would discuss the Ukraine funding plan at their regular meeting and would adopt legislative proposals the following day.

Source: https://congluan.vn/bi-phan-doi-ke-hoach-eu-dung-tai-san-nga-ho-tro-ukraine-10320271.html