Representatives of the member states of the European Union agreed in Brussels that they will use the proceeds from Russian assets frozen in Europe to buy weapons for Ukraine and to reconstruct this country. The Belgian Presidency informed about it.
The proposal that 90 percent of the proceeds be used to buy weapons for Ukraine through the so-called European Peace Facility was presented by the European Commission in March. The remaining ten percent should be transferred to the EU budget and used for the reconstruction of Ukraine.
Finding an agreement was preceded by long debates. Some countries refused to use the money for military purposes.
But the Belgian presidency came up with a compromise proposal that satisfied even those countries that wished to remain neutral, such as Austria, Malta, Cyprus and Ireland. Slovakia and Hungary have already expressed reservations about sending military aid to Ukraine. The Czech Republic, on the other hand, supported the use of proceeds from frozen Russian assets in Europe both for the reconstruction and defense of the war-torn country.
The war in Ukraine will continue for years, says analyst Bříza
The war in Ukraine will continue for years, says analyst Vlastislav Bříza • e15
In response to the attack by Russian troops on Ukraine more than two years ago, Western countries froze the assets of the Russian Central Bank worth around 210 billion euros. Most of these assets are located in Europe, particularly in the Euroclear international payment settlement center in Belgium. It is the revenues from these assets that the European Commission wants to provide to Ukraine.
The total financial contribution to Ukraine from frozen Russian assets could be around 4.5 billion euros this year. Kyiv could receive the first funding as early as July. Heated discussions also took place about how much money Euroclear could keep for its expenses. The amount was reduced during negotiations from three percent – which the EU countries did not agree to – to 0.3 percent.
