Four EU capitals ask to put the Russian-asset loan for Ukraine back on the table
Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain, and Poland have formally requested that the European Commission restart discussions on a reparations loan for Ukraine funded by frozen Russian assets, the Financial Times reported. According to a draft letter seen by The Kyiv Independent, the four countries are asking EU foreign ministers to address the stalled mechanism and Belgium's objections during an upcoming informal meeting in Ireland.
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The four-nation letter
A draft letter led by Sweden and co-signed by the foreign ministers of the Netherlands, Poland, and Spain calls on the EU to reopen work on utilizing frozen Russian financial assets to support Ukraine. The document, dated 27 August and seen by The Kyiv Independent, asks ministers to hold a preliminary discussion at an informal meeting in Ireland in early September. The letter emphasizes that while the previous EU loan of 90 billion euros was a significant milestone, it will not be sufficient to meet Kyiv's defense needs. The request arrives during a critical week when Ukraine's defense ministry is facing a 23.1 billion euro financing gap.[2], [1]
Belgium's hesitation
The original plan to leverage the frozen funds stalled in December due to objections from Belgium. Almost all of the 210 billion euros in Russian assets immobilized in Europe are held at Euroclear, the Brussels-based depository. Belgium has expressed reluctance to shoulder the legal and financial repayment risks if Russia decides to sue over the confiscated funds. Instead of proceeding with the asset-backed mechanism, the bloc agreed to a 90 billion euro loan backed by its own budget while promising to keep working on a separate reparations loan.[1]
Seeking a breakthrough
The four capitals are now asking the European Commission to report on concrete ways to overcome Belgium's objections and restart the reparations loan process. According to the Financial Times, citing people familiar with the document, little has moved since the initial commitment to continue the work. The upcoming ministerial discussions in Ireland will test whether the bloc can find a legal and political consensus to bypass the current deadlock and unlock the immobilized Russian funds.[1], [2]
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