Euroclear Calls EU Plan to Seize Russian Assets for Ukraine Unrealistic
The head of the Brussels clearing house Euroclear, Valerie Urben, stated that the current plan of the European Commission to forcibly seize frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine is unrealistic. She emphasized that the depository is prepared to challenge such a scenario in court to avoid the risk of bankruptcy in the event of possible retaliatory actions from Moscow.
This is reported by AgroReview
Legal Consequences and Euroclear’s Position
Valerie Urben pointed out that international law permits the blocking of assets from other countries but does not allow for their expropriation. She stressed that if Russia perceives the loan for Ukraine’s reconstruction as the confiscation of its own funds, it may take appropriate measures.
“If Russia views this reconstruction loan provided to Ukraine as the confiscation of its assets, it will not remain inactive.”
The head of Euroclear also warned that Belgium could become a target for economic and legal actions from Russia in response to such decisions.
US Position and Scenarios for Asset Utilization
According to Bloomberg, the United States is urging some EU countries to refrain from supporting the reparations loan, noting that frozen Russian assets may be needed as a tool for a future peace agreement with Moscow, rather than for continuing the war. Meanwhile, as part of one of the American plans, the possibility of investing $100 billion from frozen Russian assets in the US into the reconstruction of Ukraine is being discussed, with Washington potentially receiving 50% of the profits.
Since the onset of Russia’s full-scale aggression against Ukraine, approximately €260 billion of Russian Central Bank assets have been blocked in Western countries, of which about €193 billion are held in Euroclear accounts in Belgium. European countries have been debating for nearly four years the possibility of using these funds to support Ukraine.
Recently, the idea of providing Kyiv with a “reparations loan” of $140 billion backed by Russian assets has been discussed. Belgium, which controls the majority of these funds, categorically opposes such an approach due to concerns over legal risks from Russia. The European Central Bank also disagrees with insuring such a loan.
Russia firmly rejects any attempts to confiscate its assets and views any potential use of them for the benefit of Ukraine as theft.