EU proposes moving frozen Russian assets into new entity
Politicians urge action while there is still a "window of opportunity" (photo: Getty Images)
Former top officials from Germany, France, and the United States propose transferring Russia's frozen Euroclear assets to a new EU structure, according to Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
The publication says that at the end of 2025, Belgium refused to transfer Russia's frozen assets worth 210 billion euros to Ukraine. The decision came after Moscow warned of consequences if anyone touched its funds.
Instead, the European Union approved a 90-billion-euro loan for Ukraine for 2026 and 2027, with the loan's interest financed by EU citizens.
Now, in an effort to overcome the impasse, three former politicians have joined forces and issued a statement. According to the publication, they are:
- Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, former leader of the Christian Democratic Union and former German defense minister
- Nathalie Loiseau, former French minister for European affairs
- Daleep Singh, who served as a deputy national security adviser to the United States and worked as a sanctions expert under President Joe Biden.
All three call for Belgium's concerns to be addressed and cite several reasons.
"The European Union should immediately transfer the frozen funds of the Central Bank of Russia... to a new EU administrator. Belgium would then no longer have to fear Russian coercion," the statement says.
Why EU is called to transfer assets to a new entity
The outlet says the former officials cite several arguments in support of transferring the assets.
First, they see a window of opportunity right now. Their argument is that Russian President Vladimir Putin's war has reached an impasse, Russian oil refineries are burning, and former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, described as Moscow's Trojan horse in the EU, is a thing of the past.
Second, they believe the new funds would strengthen Ukraine's negotiating position.
"If the EU transfers the Russian assets to Kyiv now, Putin will understand that continuing in the same way until Ukraine and its allies run out of money is hopeless. This could increase his willingness to agree to a ceasefire," Kramp-Karrenbauer explained.
Third, if nothing is done, Ukraine will face serious difficulties. In particular, the 90-billion-euro aid package will expire in 2027, leaving Putin in a stronger position.
The fourth factor is that all three are concerned about the presidential election in France. The former officials write that the window of opportunity could close again if next year's election brings leaders to power who are less supportive of Ukraine. They are referring to Marine Le Pen, who could replace Emmanuel Macron.
"There is a danger that France could cease to be one of Ukraine's most important allies after Macron," Kramp-Karrenbauer said.
But France is not the only concern. There is also a fifth important reason. The argument is that these funds are needed not only by Putin, but also by US President Donald Trump.
The issue is that an unofficial 28-point peace plan, which was reportedly agreed upon by negotiators in the fall of 2025, contains a particularly important provision.
Point 14 stated that $100 billion of the frozen assets should be invested in Ukraine's reconstruction under US leadership, with 50% of the profits going to the United States. The rest would be used for Russian-American "projects."
"Some say Trump wants to use this money to finance deals between the United States and Russia. If, on the other hand, the EU takes control of the funds now, they will be protected from access by Putin or Trump," Kramp-Karrenbauer explained.
She added that in such a scenario, Europeans and Ukrainians would be in a stronger position in future peace negotiations.
Another factor is Germany. If Europe can finance Ukraine's defense with Russian money rather than its own resources, this could undermine a key argument used by Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany party that German taxpayers should not be financing a war that supposedly has nothing to do with them.
Other important details to know
Earlier, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that the EU would provide Ukraine with 1.4 billion euros from proceeds generated by Russia's frozen assets.
According to her, the money will go toward defense. The decision was made following another wave of Russian strikes.
