Hungarian PM says the issue won’t be on this week’s summit agenda
The EU will not address plans to seize Russian assets at Thursday’s summit in Brussels, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced Wednesday, describing it as a “victory.”
The bloc has temporarily frozen about $230 billion in Russian central bank assets by invoking Article 122, an emergency treaty clause that enables approval by qualified majority rather than unanimity, despite objections from some member states, including Hungary and Slovakia. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed using the funds to support a so-called ‘reparations loan’ to Ukraine—a plan that was expected to be discussed at EU leader’s gathering Thursday.
Orban wrote on X that “the Brusselians had backed down” and that the Russian assets “will not be on the table” at the summit, deeming it a “victory” for his PatriotsEU bloc.
”The Commission now pushes joint loans, but we will not let our families foot the bill for Ukraine’s war. Not on our watch,” he said.
Politico also reported that Belgium’s EU ambassador, Peter Moors, told his peers Wednesday during closed-door talks that negotiations on the issue were “going backward.”
Orban has previously accused EU officials of “raping European law in broad daylight” by invoking the clause to sidestep Hungary’s potential veto, adding that Budapest would take the matter to the bloc’s top court.
Moscow has denounced the freeze as unlawful and labeled any use of the funds “theft.” Russia’s central bank has initiated legal action against the Belgian clearinghouse Euroclear, which holds over $200 billion in frozen assets.
The EU maintains the freeze complies with international law, but Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever cautioned that utilizing the money to guarantee a loan to Kiev would erode confidence in the EU financial system and subject Belgium to legal jeopardy.
International financial institutions, including the ECB and the IMF, have also warned that leveraging the immobilized assets as collateral could diminish trust in the euro.
Fitch Ratings has put Euroclear on watch for a potential downgrade, citing legal and liquidity hazards associated with the EU’s attempt to employ the funds.