EU leaders fail to agree on using frozen Russian assets for Ukraine - Politico

The most sensitive part of the text is a provision granting Belgium full and unlimited solidarity and risk-sharing from other EU member states once the financial scheme is launched.

The clause is intended to ease Brussels’ concerns about potential legal and financial consequences should Russia seek the return of the frozen assets. However, the wording of this provision is still under negotiation.

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever has repeatedly demanded clear and unlimited financial guarantees. However, a number of other EU countries oppose this approach, viewing it as a blank check.

“Plan B”

Against the backdrop of the debate over frozen assets, the idea of issuing joint EU debt to finance Ukraine is once again being discussed. According to a source familiar with the talks, while the new draft Council conclusions only reference a plan to use Russian assets, leaders are also considering a so-called “Plan B” involving joint borrowing.

However, implementing this option would require unanimous support, creating the risk of a veto by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán or Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, both of whom oppose financing Ukraine.

According to diplomatic sources, discussions in Brussels also include ways to bypass this resistance by excluding both countries from the scheme.

To ease Belgium’s concerns about possible retaliation from Russia, EU countries are considering increasing the size of the initial cash reserves for a major loan to Ukraine.

Previously, the European Commission proposed making the first disbursements once a buffer equal to 50% of the initial contribution had been built up. In the updated document, that threshold has been raised to 75%.

What Belgium wants

According to three diplomats, Belgium’s demands for unlimited financial guarantees tied to a €210 billion aid package for Ukraine have generated little sympathy. One of them described the idea as a deal killer.

The latest draft conclusions of today’s European Council refer to full [and unlimited] solidarity and risk-sharing, but the words in brackets are unlikely to survive overnight.

“Few countries would happily turn their national budget into a bottomless money well for Belgium to drink from,” the Politico notes.

EU summit on financial support for Ukraine

An EU leaders’ summit is taking place in Brussels on December 18–19, where decisions are expected on financial support for Ukraine for 2026–2027.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stressed that the meeting will not end until a solution is found. The EU still lacks a unified position on a so-called reparations loan for Ukraine. Some leaders favor financing it through Russian assets, while others support a joint debt mechanism.