{"id":3167,"date":"2025-02-28T12:08:17","date_gmt":"2025-02-28T12:08:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/europe-is-sitting-on-russias-198-billion-giving-it-all-to-ukraine-is-tricky\/"},"modified":"2025-02-28T12:08:17","modified_gmt":"2025-02-28T12:08:17","slug":"europe-is-sitting-on-russias-198-billion-giving-it-all-to-ukraine-is-tricky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/europe-is-sitting-on-russias-198-billion-giving-it-all-to-ukraine-is-tricky\/","title":{"rendered":"Europe is sitting on Russia&#8217;s $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2200258505.jpg\" alt=\"Europe is sitting on Russia's $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky\"><\/p>\n<p>Europe has been left scrambling to find ways to boost defense spending and continue the flow of support to Ukraine after U.S. President Donald Trump made clear the continent won&#8217;t be able to rely on Washington for its long-term security needs.<\/p>\n<p>The latest reports suggest that EU officials are considering<a href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/eu-in-talks-for-freeing-up-massive-defense-spending-after-trumps-shift-bloomberg-reports\/\"> loosening fiscal rules<\/a> to free up at least 160 billion euros ($168 billion), which could be used to create a joint <a href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/tag\/european-union\/\">EU<\/a> instrument for defense investment.<\/p>\n<p>But there is, potentially, an even bigger sum sitting right under their noses \u2014 the $198 billion in Russian central bank reserves, currently frozen in <a href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/tag\/belgium\/\">Belgium<\/a>. The EU, along with <a href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/tag\/g7\/\">G7<\/a> countries, holds a total of more than $300 billion in frozen Russian assets.<\/p>\n<p>Interest from the frozen funds has been agreed to be used to cover the $50 billion loan pledged to <a href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/tag\/ukraine\/\">Ukraine<\/a> by the G7. However, some European countries are eager to use the funds more aggressively, offer more financial and military support to Ukraine, or fund the country&#8217;s reconstruction.<\/p>\n<p>Yet figuring out exactly how this can be done, or if it should be done, still divides the continent.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"option-1-keep-calm-and-carry-on\"><strong><code>Option 1: Keep calm and carry on<\/code><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>One option would be to continue using the profits generated by the assets to support Ukraine&#8217;s war effort, a move that at one point was unprecedented.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It was the first time in history that we faced this situation,&#8221; an EU official told the Kyiv Independent on condition of anonymity.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Having a huge amount, (nearly) $200 billion, of Russian immobilized assets in Belgium \u2014 there was no legal text, no jurisprudence, no precedent.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Belgian and European lawyers worked to figure out if the profits generated by the assets could be seized and given to Ukraine. It took months, but they found a way.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s already quite something that we are using Russian money for Ukraine to buy weapons,&#8221; the official added.<\/p>\n<p>Since July 2024, profits from these assets have already been used by the European Commission and G7 countries to give Ukraine around $4.7 billion in support so far.<\/p>\n<p>Crucially, the legality of this move has not been successfully challenged. While the sums generated by these profits are a fraction of the total amount of frozen assets, this method provides Ukraine with reliable and consistent funds.<\/p>\n<p>What&#8217;s more, this has broad support from EU member states and G7 countries, which can&#8217;t be said of the other ways in which Russia&#8217;s assets might be used.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-bookmark-card\"><a class=\"kg-bookmark-container\" href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/us-senator-bernie-sanders-trump-likes-what-putin-does\/\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-content\">\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-title\">\u2018Trump likes what Putin does,\u2019 Bernie Sanders says in exclusive interview<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-description\">As Ukraine enters the fourth year of Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion, shifting political dynamics in the U.S. threaten to influence the course of the war. U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly misrepresented the war\u2019s origins, excluded Ukraine from initial negotiations, and advocated for what many\u2026<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-metadata\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"kg-bookmark-icon\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.kyivindependent.com\/content\/images\/size\/w256h256\/format\/png\/2023\/03\/K-new.svg\" alt=\"Europe is sitting on Russia's $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky\"><span class=\"kg-bookmark-author\">The Kyiv Independent<\/span><span class=\"kg-bookmark-publisher\">Kate Tsurkan<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-thumbnail\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2166931936.jpg\" alt=\"Europe is sitting on Russia's $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky\"><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"option-2-full-seizure\"><code>Option 2: Full seizure<\/code><\/h2>\n<p>EU nations could also seize the entirety of Russia&#8217;s assets across Europe and redirect the money to Ukraine or shore up their own spending. It would be a dramatic move and hugely consequential for Ukraine.<\/p>\n<p>Though the chances of it happening are slim, it does have some support.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/tag\/estonia\/\">Estonia<\/a> has been pushing for seizing Russia&#8217;s immobilized state assets for the benefit of Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale war,&#8221; the country&#8217;s Foreign Minister, Margus Tsahkna, told the Kyiv Independent.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The decision to use the windfall profits was a step in the right direction. I see that the time is ripe now to take the next step. The EU must start a serious discussion that would lead to the decision to mobilize the bulk of Russia&#8217;s sovereign assets.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><!--kg-card-begin: html--><\/p>\n<div class=\"citation-snippet\">\n<p class=\"citation-snippet__text\">\n&#8220;Enough talking, it&#8217;s time to act! Let&#8217;s finance our aid for Ukraine from the Russian frozen assets.&#8221;\n    <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><!--kg-card-end: html--><\/p>\n<p>Polish Prime Minister <a href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/tag\/donald-tusk\/\">Donald Tusk<\/a> also expressed his support for the idea in a<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/donaldtusk\/status\/1892614329792422319\"> post on X<\/a> on Feb. 20.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets.kyivindependent.com\/content\/images\/2024\/05\/GettyImages-2149300776.webp\"><source type=\"image\/jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2149300776.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2149300776.jpg\" class=\"kg-image\" alt=\"Europe is sitting on Russia's $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/picture><figcaption>Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk during his meeting with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in Warsaw, Poland on April 23, 2024. (Jakub Porzycki\/NurPhoto via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&#8220;Enough talking, it&#8217;s time to act! Let&#8217;s finance our aid for Ukraine from the Russian frozen assets,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>Despite these calls, it almost certainly won&#8217;t happen.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It is very clear that legally you cannot do it,&#8221; an EU official told the Kyiv Independent, adding: &#8220;Every financial institution, the European Central Bank, the European Commission, will tell you that.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>While the move would be legally dubious, some suggest it could also be strategically reckless.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;If we decide to take that step, we are playing Russia&#8217;s game,&#8221; the EU official said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We risk neglecting the international laws and rules that we have established to turn them into our advantage. I can imagine that in Ukraine especially, it can be very frustrating to see all that money sitting in Europe that cannot be seized.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;But we really need to resist the temptation because otherwise, we&#8217;re turning our backs on the very principles and values that we are all fighting for, that Ukraine is fighting for most of all.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>French President <a href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/tag\/emmanuel-macron\/\">Emmanuel Macron<\/a> has also expressed skepticism. Sat next to <a href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\">Trump<\/a> in the Oval Office on Feb. 24, the French leader said Russia&#8217;s assets &#8220;are not our belongings, so they are frozen.&#8221; implying that a full seizure would be unacceptable.<\/p>\n<p>Belgium, where the assets are currently frozen, has also opposed a full seizure because of what it sees as shaky legal justification, and a weakening of Ukraine&#8217;s hand in future peace negotiations.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets.kyivindependent.com\/content\/images\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2188116394.webp\"><source type=\"image\/jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2188116394.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2188116394.jpg\" class=\"kg-image\" alt=\"Europe is sitting on Russia's $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/picture><figcaption>France&#8217;s President Emmanuel Macron (C), U.S. then-President-elect Donald Trump (L), and Ukraine&#8217;s President Volodymyr Zelensky in Paris, France on Dec. 7, 2024. (Sarah Meyssonnier\/Pool\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&#8220;Whenever peace negotiations take place, having these frozen assets will be massive leverage for Ukraine,&#8221; the EU diplomat said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;If we spend them now, Ukraine will be at the negotiating table with less leverage than it could have had. Our hope is that Russia will have to compensate Ukraine and repay Ukraine for all the atrocities committed and all the destruction.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-bookmark-card\"><a class=\"kg-bookmark-container\" href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/despite-negotiations-buzz-russias-war-is-likely-to-continue-says-military-analyst-rob-lee\/\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-content\">\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-title\">\u2018As long as Russia is advancing, the war will continue\u2019\u2014 military analyst Rob Lee on what awaits Ukraine in 2025<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-description\">As Ukraine entered its fourth year of Russia\u2019s full-scale war, it was geopolitics, not the war itself, that dominated headlines, as Kyiv\u2019s relationship with new U.S. President Donald Trump nosedived over a proposed minerals deal. In the meantime though, the battlefield continues to rage on multiple\u2026<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-metadata\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"kg-bookmark-icon\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.kyivindependent.com\/content\/images\/size\/w256h256\/format\/png\/2023\/03\/K-new.svg\" alt=\"Europe is sitting on Russia's $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky\"><span class=\"kg-bookmark-author\">The Kyiv Independent<\/span><span class=\"kg-bookmark-publisher\">Francis Farrell<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-thumbnail\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2199653261-1.jpg\" alt=\"Europe is sitting on Russia's $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky\"><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"option-3-post-war-insurance\"><code>Option 3: Post-war insurance<\/code><\/h2>\n<p>A newer option being considered by European leaders is to hold Russia&#8217;s billions as collateral to ensure Moscow pays compensation to Ukraine if and when a peace deal is agreed.<\/p>\n<p>Negotiations on exactly how this might work are ongoing among European leaders, and the timeline for when this might happen remains unclear, but experts say it can be done legally.<\/p>\n<p>Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Dopagne, professor of Public International Law at Belgian UCLouvain University, told the Kyiv Independent that Russia&#8217;s war against Ukraine constitutes a &#8220;serious violation of a fundamental rule of international law, the prohibition of aggression.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;All states are entitled to take countermeasures to ensure the cessation of the violation and reparation of damages in the interest of Ukraine,&#8221; he added.<\/p>\n<p>Dopagne says that although there is limited precedent for this, he sees no major impediment to such a move under international law, adding that &#8220;Russia itself has engaged in such patterns of unilateral confiscations of foreign sovereign property for war damages in recent years.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>This means that should <a href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/tag\/russia\/\">Russia<\/a> fail to pay sufficient damages to Ukraine for the death and destruction caused by the full-scale invasion, European nations could seize the frozen billions to make up for any shortfall.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets.kyivindependent.com\/content\/images\/2024\/07\/GettyImages-2160549163--1-.webp\"><source type=\"image\/jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2160549163-1-.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2160549163-1-.jpg\" class=\"kg-image\" alt=\"Europe is sitting on Russia's $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/picture><figcaption>Emergency and rescue personnel clear rubble from the Okhmadyt children&#8217;s hospital, destroyed in a Russian missile attack amid Russia&#8217;s full-scale war against Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 8, 2024. (Roman Pilipey\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>This option will, however, be down to political will in Europe, and for now, the EU&#8217;s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, says there is no path to a deal on this.<\/p>\n<p>Baltic and Nordic countries, as well as Poland could support the move, but a number of other European countries still haven&#8217;t taken a clear stance.<\/p>\n<p>Crucially, Belgian officials told the Kyiv Independent that they don&#8217;t rule out the idea of using Russian assets as collateral in a post-peace compensation deal. However, they would need to be certain that any deal is legally watertight.<\/p>\n<p>Other EU countries will almost certainly want similar assurances, a process which could take months.<\/p>\n<p>Of all the potential options, diplomats and legal experts behind the scenes say this could be the most viable, but exactly when it could be put into practice remains unclear.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"so-what-now\"><code>So what now?<\/code><\/h2>\n<p>European leaders have shown a willingness to explore ways of using Russia&#8217;s frozen billions to help Ukraine, and continue to use the profits they generate to fund Kyiv&#8217;s war effort in the meantime.<\/p>\n<p>The options available to them, however, have either been dismissed outright, or mean wading through uncharted legal waters and complex political wranglings.<\/p>\n<p>A determinant factor will be the negotiations between Russia and the U.S. on how to end Moscow&#8217;s war of aggression in Ukraine \u2014 negotiations in which Washington has been reluctant to include its Ukrainian and European allies.<\/p>\n<p>Whatever the outcome of those negotiations and decisions made in European capitals, using more of Russia&#8217;s assets in support of Ukraine, if it happens at all, will almost certainly take months.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-bookmark-card\"><a class=\"kg-bookmark-container\" href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/first-we-need-peace-us-ukraine-minerals-deal-first-step-on-long-road-to-investment\/\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-content\">\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-title\">What the US-Ukraine mineral deal actually means<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-description\">As Kyiv and Washington celebrate agreeing to jointly develop Ukraine\u2019s natural resources after weeks of tense negotiations, the deal still has a long way to go before the money starts flowing. Officials, experts, and those close to the deal say the current version of the agreement is an improvement<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-metadata\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"kg-bookmark-icon\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.kyivindependent.com\/content\/images\/size\/w256h256\/format\/png\/2023\/03\/K-new.svg\" alt=\"Europe is sitting on Russia's $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky\"><span class=\"kg-bookmark-author\">The Kyiv Independent<\/span><span class=\"kg-bookmark-publisher\">Dominic Culverwell<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-bookmark-thumbnail\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2201331167-2.jpg\" alt=\"Europe is sitting on Russia's $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky\"><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p> &#8211; https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/tag\/ukraine\/rss\/<\/p>\n<p>This article appeared on the websitekyivindependent.com<br \/>\nThis article is taken based on Law no. 8\/1996 of Romania. News does not enjoy copyright, so they can be taken, this is our right to take news and information in its entirety and distribute them further. The content was made available to us through the rss mechanism<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/kyivindependent.com\/can-europe-give-russias-frozen-billions-to-ukraine\/\">Original Content<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Europe has been left scrambling to find ways to boost defense spending and continue the flow of support to Ukraine after U.S. President Donald Trump made clear the continent won&#8217;t be able to rely on Washington for its long-term security needs. The latest reports suggest that EU officials are considering loosening fiscal rules to free<a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/europe-is-sitting-on-russias-198-billion-giving-it-all-to-ukraine-is-tricky\/\"> [&hellip;]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":3168,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1152,1],"tags":[4050,255,1549,705,3770,185,253,209,1206,4049,123,4051,66],"class_list":["post-3167","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kyivindependent","category-news","tag-4050","tag-all","tag-billion","tag-europe","tag-giving","tag-is","tag-it","tag-on","tag-russias","tag-sitting","tag-to","tag-tricky","tag-ukraine"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Europe is sitting on Russia&#039;s $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky - News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/europe-is-sitting-on-russias-198-billion-giving-it-all-to-ukraine-is-tricky\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Europe is sitting on Russia&#039;s $198 billion. Giving it all to Ukraine is tricky - News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Europe has been left scrambling to find ways to boost defense spending and continue the flow of support to Ukraine after U.S. President Donald Trump made clear the continent won&#8217;t be able to rely on Washington for its long-term security needs. The latest reports suggest that EU officials are considering loosening fiscal rules to free [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/europe-is-sitting-on-russias-198-billion-giving-it-all-to-ukraine-is-tricky\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-02-28T12:08:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/02\/GettyImages-2200258505.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Misu Videan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Misu Videan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/europe-is-sitting-on-russias-198-billion-giving-it-all-to-ukraine-is-tricky\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/europe-is-sitting-on-russias-198-billion-giving-it-all-to-ukraine-is-tricky\/\",\"name\":\"Europe is sitting on Russia's $198 billion. 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