Freezing Russian assets worth nearly 200 billion euros for as long as possible is an important decision for the EU, said French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, quoted by Agence France-Presse, BTA reported.
The agency notes that this came at a time when the 27 EU countries are expected to renew their freeze today.
At the beginning of Russia's war against Ukraine, these assets were frozen for a period of 6 months, subject to renewal if there is a consensus among the member states.
"Which implies that if a country opposes the freeze, Russia can at any time recover the amounts", explained Jean-Noel Barrot told France Info radio. "What we want is security for Europe and Europeans. This is the aim of the decision we are taking today and it is important because it will undoubtedly change the course of the war and accelerate the achievement of peace," he said. According to Barrot, the assets will be frozen "until Russia ends its aggressive war and pays reparations to Europe." The decision will avoid "others deciding on the purpose of the sums instead of the Europeans themselves," Barrot said, citing the fact that the administration of US President Donald Trump intends to use the assets for investments that would be beneficial to American companies. The indefinite freeze allows for the allocation of new aid to Ukraine, including the creation of a financial package that is being intensively discussed in Brussels and that could protect Ukraine from any financial difficulties in the next nearly 2 years if the war continues, Barrot added. Technically, the 27 EU member states decided yesterday to activate the procedure for a long-term freezing of assets, the Danish EU presidency announced. The decision is due to be confirmed today following a written procedure.
Heads of state and prime ministers from the member states will then meet in Brussels on 18 December to discuss a plan to finance Ukraine, which would potentially use frozen Russian assets in Europe. For now, the Europeans are facing opposition from Belgium, where most of the Russian central bank's assets are held. The Belgian prime minister refuses to take the risks in the absence of clear guarantees from other member states about the use of Russian assets.