EU consider using seized Russian assets to fund loan to Ukraine

Copenhagen: European Union leaders on Wednesday weighed a new scheme to provide longer-term financial and military support to Ukraine using hundreds of billions of dollars in frozen Russian assets held in Europe.

The plan — which Moscow has described as “theft” — is a fresh sign of the EU’s determination to push ahead alone with support for Ukraine without the United States.Ukraine’s budget and military needs for 2026 and 2027 are estimated to total around USD 153 billion. The EU has already poured in 174 billion euros since the war started in February 2022.

The biggest pot of ready funds available is through frozen Russian assets. Most of it is held in Belgium – around 194 billion euros as of June – and outside the EU in Japan, with around USD 50 billion, and the US, UK and Canada with lesser amounts. The European Commission is working on a new “reparation loan” which would be backed by the frozen assets, if the 27 member countries agree, but not all were onboard going into Wednesday’s EU summit.