The European Commission is urgently developing a legal solution aimed at alleviating Belgium's concerns about using frozen Russian assets to provide a loan to Ukraine, Politico reports.
Belgium fears that the sanctions mechanism under which 140 billion euros of Russian assets are currently frozen in the EU may not be extended at some point – for example, through a veto from Hungary or Slovakia.
In such a case, Belgium, where most of the frozen Russian assets are located, would be forced to immediately return these funds to Russia – including those that were used for loans to Ukraine.
To eliminate this risk, the European Commission wants to take advantage of Article 122 of the EU Treaty, which allows governments to make decisions "in the spirit of solidarity among member states regarding measures appropriate to the economic situation."
The European Commission wants to interpret this in such a way that a qualified majority would be sufficient for a decision on the freezing of sanctions, rather than a unanimous decision, which would deprive Hungary of its potential veto right.
One EU diplomat who spoke with Politico said that this strategy is a way to "ensure Belgium's support."
According to Politico, European lawyers also believe that Article 122 of the EU Treaty can be used to change the extension period of sanctions from six months to three years.
The final legal proposal is expected to be presented on Wednesday, sources told Politico.
Leave a comment