Belgium sets difficult conditions for the use of its frozen Russian assets
Belgium confirmed today, Thursday, that it would not agree to use the frozen assets of the Russian Central Bank to finance a loan to Ukraine, until a clear legal basis is established.
Belgian Prime Minister Bart de Wever, in a statement reported by the Belgian news agency ahead of the European summit in Brussels, insisted on the necessity of sharing risks and the necessity of exploiting Russian assets in other countries. Also.
He said: "If you make such a decision, it seems clear to me that you need to know the legal basis and ensure its solidity. Until then, I will not back down from my decision.”
He added: “This did not happen even during World War II. So, this is not a detail. I’d like to see it first, and then we can discuss it.”
European Union leaders are discussing a 140 billion euro loan to help meet Ukraine’s massive financing needs. Most of the attention is focused on the assets of the Russian Central Bank frozen in Euroclear in Brussels, which amount to about 175 billion euros.
The Belgian Prime Minister warned that his country should not be left vulnerable to Russian retaliation. (The rest of the Europeans) move with us. Otherwise, Belgium will be the only target of Russian counter-sanctions,” pointing to the possibility of confiscating Western assets in Russia.
The Belgian Prime Minister called on other European countries to be transparent about their frozen Russian assets.
For his part…the German Chancellor said Friedrich Merz, he is confident that European leaders will take concrete steps regarding the use of frozen Russian assets despite Belgium’s reservations.
Mertz told reporters in Brussels: “I share the concerns of the Belgian Prime Minister, but I am confident that we will take a step to Forward.
Mertz added that the Chinese leadership must be informed of Europe’s dissatisfaction with the current situation related to rare earth exports, indicating that he wants to work on finding a joint solution.
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