Politico: The plan to seize Russian assets in the European Union reaches a dead end

According to RCO News Agency, less than 24 hours before EU leaders go to Brussels for crucial talks on financing Ukraine’s war effort, Belgium believes the talks are going in the opposite direction.

“Paltico” newspaper quoted two diplomats present at the meeting and reported: “Belgium’s ambassador to the European Union, Peter Morse, told his colleagues on Wednesday during closed-door talks that we are going backwards.”

The American media added: “The European Commission and EU officials are trying to calm Belgium’s concerns about a €210 billion financial package for Ukraine that uses frozen Russian government assets across the EU.” “Belgium’s support is crucial because the majority of the frozen assets are held in the Brussels-based Euroclear financial depository.”

Belgian Prime Minister Bart de Weaver refuses to join the plan until other EU governments provide significant financial and legal guarantees.

One of the most sensitive issues for Belgium is limiting financial guarantees, which are currently 210 billion euros. Belgium believes that the guarantees provided by other EU countries should not have any limits to protect them in any scenario.

“Negotiations seemed to be moving in the right direction,” Politico emphasized. “The Belgians supported the proposal of the Commission for the capitals of the European Union to allocate maximum financial guarantees against the Ukraine package, but the statements of the Belgian ambassador at the end of the meeting made News, and these negotiations will probably reach a dead end.”

One of the diplomats, who did not want to be named, said: “I don’t know anymore!”

The spokesperson of the permanent representation of Belgium refused to comment on this matter.

Politico also added: “One of Belgium’s key demands is that all EU countries end their bilateral investment treaties with Russia to ensure that Belgium is not alone in the face of Moscow’s retaliatory measures.” “But the sad thing for Belgium is that several countries are reluctant to do so for fear of retaliation from the Kremlin.”

According to an EU diplomat, Morse said at the meeting that any decision on the use of frozen Russian assets “must be made by de Weaver”.

Belgium is pushing the commission to consider alternative financing options for Ukraine, such as joint debt issuance, a position taken by Bulgaria, Italy and Malta.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in her speech to the European Parliament on Wednesday morning: “I have proposed 2 different options for this future European Council, one based on assets and the other based on EU borrowing. And we have to decide which path we want to take.”

Morse suggested a possible solution by proposing to activate an emergency clause under Article 122 that would neutralize the veto threat.

At the same meeting, lawyers from the Commission and the European Council rejected Belgium’s proposal, saying it was not legally enforceable.

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