Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on October 23, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Belgium seeks firm guarantees before backing the use of frozen Russian assets for Ukraine, citing legal and financial risks. EU leaders to discuss further in December.
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever said on Thursday that his country needs concrete and solid guarantees before supporting a plan to use frozen Russian assets to fund a giant loan to Kyiv, pointing out that the plan is "unchartered territory".
Belgium's position is critical, as the assets in question are held by Belgian financial institution Euroclear. The government has cautioned against seizing the assets, arguing it could expose Euroclear to litigation and ultimately create a major financial crisis.
"Can this (plan) be legal? That is a very good question ... There are no clear answers," De Wever told reporters after attending an EU summit in Brussels where it was one of the subjects being discussed with EU leaders.
"We will in any case be buried in litigation. That seems like a certainty."
EU leaders did not reach an agreement on how to handle the frozen assets during the summit. The issue will be discussed further at the next EU summit in December.
(Reporting by Lili Bayer; Writing by Charlotte Van Campenhout; Editing by Leslie Adler and Himani Sarkar)
A financial crisis is a situation where financial assets suddenly lose a large part of their nominal value, often leading to significant economic downturns and instability in financial markets.
An international financial institution is an organization that provides financial support and advice for economic development projects, often operating across multiple countries, such as the World Bank or IMF.
Investment portfolios are collections of financial assets such as stocks, bonds, and other securities held by an individual or institution, aimed at achieving specific financial goals.
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