EU leaders agreed in principle to seize most of the profits from frozen Russian assets and give them to Ukraine.
The proposal could generate €3bn (£2.6bn) this year, with the first billion to be released to Ukraine by July, European Commission Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen said. He made the remarks late Thursday at the end of the first day of the EU summit. Summit held in Brussels.
“I told our leaders that if we put together a proposal now, we can spend the first $1 billion on July 1st. So it’s up to us,” she said.
Von der Leyen also revealed that the EU is considering raising tariffs on Russian grain, including stolen Ukrainian grain, that enters the EU market.
The agreement comes after nearly a year of negotiations over the legal basis for effectively seizing 190 billion euros held at Belgium’s central securities depository, Euroclear.
The deal was cleared after the wording was tweaked to address Hungarian objections to funds being used to supply arms to Ukraine.
It has not yet been determined how the funds will be divided, but the proposal is for 90% to be used for military programs and 10% for reconstruction, with some funds to be used for peacekeeping around the world, with aid from Hungary. It could be diverted to EU funds for activities. Concerns.
The move still carries legal risks. If Russia files a lawsuit, the funds could have to be returned after the war.
On Wednesday, the Kremlin said such a step was a serious violation of international law, but EU diplomats were unanimous that profits and interest generated by frozen assets could be used in Ukraine. He said he agreed.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy had called on EU leaders to step up support by increasing air cover and releasing frozen assets to protect eastern cities from Russian bombing.
“The aggressor must pay the highest price for war. This is consistent with both the letter and the spirit of the law,” he told EU leaders in a video address.
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He went further and called on EU countries to also take into account the capital held by Belgian banks, which has not been considered.
At their summit, EU leaders agreed to further support Ukraine and Moldova’s bids to join the EU and call on the European Commission to “swiftly adopt a negotiating framework”. [for accession] Without delay”.
Both leaders agreed that it would be right to proceed with accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina once it has met all the reform conditions necessary to qualify as a candidate.
Zelenskiy thanked the EU for the 5 billion euro payment from the Ukraine Support Fund agreed in December and for the recent provision of ammunition under an initiative launched by the Czech Republic to procure weapons outside the bloc. expressed his intentions.
“If we have enough support for Ukraine, it will show Putin’s allies that we have enough support even if this crazy person orders more invasions of other European countries.” ” he said.
