Europe Asia News

Talks between senior European Commission officials and the Belgian government regarding a €140 billion loan to Ukraine made no progress on Friday.

Europe’s efforts to use frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine have been stalled by Belgium’s objections, while Slovakia’s leader is reminding the EU that it’s now his turn to block the plan.

Belgium’s demands for financial guarantees from EU capitals have become the focus of the initiative to leverage frozen Russian state assets located on Belgian territory. According to two officials familiar with the talks, senior European Commission representatives failed on Friday to persuade the Belgian prime minister’s office to join the plan.

Then, the intervention of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico further complicated the bloc’s attempts to replenish Kyiv’s war fund before it runs dry in the spring.

Fico said on Sunday to Slovak public broadcaster STVR, “Slovakia will not take part in any legal or financial plan to seize frozen assets if these funds are used for military spending in Ukraine.”

Fico’s remarks highlight the legal challenge the Commission faces in countering the veto threat from pro-Kremlin EU member states over sanctions on Russia. This is also one of Belgium’s key demands. The Commission is working on a legal mechanism to keep Russian assets frozen until Moscow ends the war and pays reparations to Ukraine.