U.S. President Donald Trump is putting pressure on Ukraine and sidelining Europe, pushing Kyiv toward a potentially unfair peace. Meanwhile, the EU holds a significant financial leverage — $245 billion in frozen Russian assets that could change the course of events, writes The Wall Street Journal.
Source: Gazeta.UA
Most of these funds are stored at the Belgian international clearing house Euroclear. The EU has already agreed to use the interest from these assets to support Ukraine but avoids full confiscation due to legal risks. In response, Kyiv proposed a reparations credit mechanism.
The proposal essentially turns the frozen Russian assets into a kind of “Schrödinger’s financial cat”: the EU borrows about $164 billion from Euroclear secured by Russian assets and provides Ukraine with an interest-free loan. The funds will be repaid only after the war ends and Russia pays reparations, while Moscow’s formal claims to Euroclear remain unchanged.
Belgium opposes the scheme, fearing legal liability if complications arise. To mitigate risks, the EU declared an economic emergency, allowing the assets to remain frozen until a qualified majority decides otherwise.
WSJ emphasizes that international investors are unlikely to treat the reparations credit as a typical commercial dispute. It is an exceptional measure in response to Kremlin’s neo-imperial aggression, as Vladimir Putin ignored international law by launching a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Journalists note that Euroclear has clients in over 50 countries, and Russia may attempt to pursue the company in foreign jurisdictions. “It would be a strange irony and a sign of weakness if Europe allowed Russia to exploit Western legal norms to reclaim its funds after Moscow violated all rules and tried to conquer Ukraine,” the publication concludes.