Merz campaigns for Russian assets deal ahead of key EU talks
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has again urged fellow EU leaders to agree to use Russian state assets frozen in the bloc to provide financial support to Ukraine, a proposal that is set to dominate a high-stakes summit in Brussels later this week.
Merz stressed the need to send “a clear signal to Russia” that continuing its war on Ukraine was pointless, in an address to lawmakers on Wednesday before he was set to depart for Belgium.
The German chancellor is one of the main backers of a proposal set forth by the European Commission to use around €210 billion ($247.4 billion) in Russian assets held under EU sanctions to provide Ukraine with much-needed loans to allow the country to continue to defend itself over the next two years.
However, Merz earlier this week conceded himself that chances of EU leaders striking a deal during Thursday’s summit are “fifty-fifty,” as Belgium, where the lion’s share of the assets is held, has opposed the plan due to legal concerns.
On Wednesday, the German leader again tried to allay those fears, saying the commission’s proposal, which stipulates that Ukraine will repay the funds from Russian reparation payments, was fully in line with international law and international obligations.
Merz highlighted the importance of the upcoming talks, saying that the decision was “of considerable significance.”
“This issue is about nothing less than European security and sovereignty,” he said.
Italy also sceptical
Other EU members which might still need to be brought on board include Italy, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Wednesday also warning of potential legal hurdles to the plans.
Finding a way to use the Russian state assets that is legally sound is “anything but easy,” she told Italian lawmakers.
Meloni stressed that she supports efforts to make Russia bear the costs of its war on Ukraine, launched in February 2022.
She also said she was generally open to plans to use Russian state assets frozen in the European Union, but only if the legal situation is sound.
“If the legal basis for this initiative is not sound, we would be giving Russia its first real victory since the beginning of this conflict,” the Italian premier said.
A so-called qualified majority – of at least 15 of the EU’s 27 states, representing 65% of the bloc’s population – is needed to approve the plans, but it is considered unlikely that other EU countries would be willing to outvote Belgium.
