Belgian PM Bart De Wever (Flemish nationalist N-VA) has responded to international requests to use Russian assets deposited in Belgium to aid Ukraine. Belgium is prepared to use Russian assets frozen in Belgium to support Ukraine, but first a number of urgent questions need to be answered. That was the message from Prime Minister De Wever at a news conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, this morning. European leaders have been discussing this controversial step at an informal EU summit since yesterday .
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PM De Wever: 'Russian assets frozen in Belgium can be used, but questions need to be answered first'
Colin Clapson
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The discussion about Russian assets at Euroclear, a large Belgian financial company specialising in managing foreign money, dubbed the banks’ bank, has been going on for a long time. After Russia’s further invasion of Ukraine, the company froze Russian assets as part of international sanctions. The profits made on these assets are already being used to support Ukraine, but there are growing calls for the money itself to be used.
The assets amount to around 185 billion euros in total. It’s money that could be put to good use, now that the US is increasingly disengaging from the conflict. ‘We are prepared to use these funds, but there are a number of questions that need to be answered,’ said De Wever. ‘There are major legal and financial risks.’ The Belgian PM is asking other countries to show their willingness to share these risks.
In addition to solidarity, the prime minister wants transparency. According to the Belgian leader, other European countries also have Russian assets, but Belgium is the only nation that sends profits from them to Ukraine. Finally, De Wever warns against retaliatory measures from Russia that could hit Western companies and banks.