Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said today that the EU's intentions to use frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine are seriously hampered by the position of the European Central Bank (ECB), ANSA reported, quoted by bTA.
"If the ECB takes a position against this proposal, the work on how and whether the frozen assets can be used will certainly become more complicated," Tajani said before a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels.
"The issue has always been about guarantees. So let's see," he added.
Tajani stressed that a thorough legal analysis is needed to establish whether such a scheme is possible, taking into account the risks to the stability of the eurozone.
"Politically we are in favour. The problem is whether all this can be done legally without creating turmoil," the Italian foreign minister added.
Yesterday in the "Financial Times" announced that the ECB is refusing to guarantee a loan worth 140 billion euros to Ukraine, thus dealing a serious blow to the EU's plan to provide a "reparation loan" backed by frozen Russian assets.
The ECB points out in its conclusions that the European Commission's proposal violates its powers, making it even more difficult for Brussels to obtain the huge loan in exchange for Russian bank assets frozen in the Belgian securities depository "Euroclear".