Belgian officials stated on December 16 that the European Union’s proposed guarantees for accessing Russian assets to support Ukraine are insufficient for the country to release funds from Euroclear accounts.
The EU has offered Belgium three specific assurances regarding the seizure of Russian assets in favor of Ukraine. These include:
First, Belgium would be able to access financing equal to the entire package if Moscow initiates lawsuits or retaliatory measures.
Second, the country could rely on this support system regardless of the total amount of financial guarantees provided by individual EU member states.
Third, funds would not be transferred until these guarantees are in place.
According to sources, all European countries participating in the initiative would have to terminate bilateral investment agreements with Russia simultaneously.
Belgian officials emphasized at a meeting of the permanent representatives that the EU’s offers were inadequate. They warned that attempts to ignore their concerns would be futile and that Euroclear funds would not be released without additional guarantees from the EU.
