FT: EU pressing Belgium to allow use of frozen Russian assets for Ukraine

Belgium is coming under increasing pressure from the EU to allow the use of frozen Russian assets to provide a reparations loan to Ukraine.

The Financial Times notes that around €190 billion of Russian sovereign assets held by Euroclear, the central securities depository in Brussels, have been frozen in response to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Initially, many Western countries, including the US, Germany and Belgium, were reluctant to use these funds, fearing legal and financial repercussions. However, Europe's stance has shifted in recent weeks.

According to the FT, US President Donald Trump's administration has urged G7 allies to seize "or otherwise use" Russia's underlying assets "to fund Ukraine's defence".

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz later argued in an FT op-ed that €140 billion from those assets should be channelled into a loan to strengthen Ukraine's defences.

The European Commission has since outlined how such a reparations loan could be structured.

However, Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever has urged the other 26 EU member states to assume the legal and financial risks linked to the loan and to guarantee its full amount so that Belgium would not be responsible for repayment.

According to the FT, his position has drawn criticism from other capitals, especially given that Euroclear's profits are subject to Belgian corporation tax.

"[Belgium] has spent three years saying Euroclear is Belgian and so are the benefits," said one senior EU diplomat involved in talks on the matter. "Now, when it wants to share the risks, it claims Euroclear is European."

Three diplomats have said that patience with Belgian officials is running thin.

Other European capitals argue that the complicated situation in Ukraine requires solidarity, noting that Poland has agreed to host the main weapons supply hub for Ukraine, and Denmark is sending F-16 fighters to Kyiv without demanding that other countries share the risks.

"There is no more low-hanging fruit," said another EU diplomat. "Everyone has to do what they can."

The European Commission has attempted to alleviate some of Belgium's concerns by adding provisions stating that if Russia begins paying military reparations, the loan would be covered by national contingent liabilities.

"We think actually that the risks here for Belgium are rather limited," said a senior EU official.

The Commission, supported by most EU capitals, maintains that the loan is structured in a way that does not involve asset confiscation and notes that court decisions outside the EU are not recognised in Brussels.

However, the Belgian government has stated that "the current plan that is circulating is not satisfactory" and that contingent liabilities do not "address the issue of risk coverage".

According to reports, the EU aims to agree on a €140 billion loan by December, with the first disbursements scheduled for the second quarter of 2026.

De Wever's stance on Russian assets is said to have irritated some EU leaders at a recent summit in Copenhagen, according to FT sources familiar with the discussions.

They also pointed to Belgium's relatively low level of military support for Ukraine over the past three years compared with Denmark, Sweden and Germany, which have provided significantly more.

Belgian officials, in turn, argue that De Wever's position is justified, as he is protecting his country's national interests.

Kaja Kallas, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, emphasised that the idea of a reparations loan to Ukraine using Russian assets is not, in principle, contrary to international law.

In response, Russia has begun threatening to nationalise Western companies if the EU seizes its assets.