EU Countries Urge Revival of Plan to Tap Frozen Russian Assets for Ukraine
A group of EU member states has urged the European Commission to revive plans for using frozen Russian central bank assets to support Ukraine's defense needs. The letter, signed by Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain, and Poland on August 27, 2026, comes as Ukraine faces a €23 billion shortfall in its defense budget.
The EU had agreed to a €90 billion loan package for Ukraine back in December 2025, but the loan's structure deliberately avoided touching the principal of the frozen Russian reserves. The assets in question are worth around €210 billion and remain immobilized at Euroclear in Belgium.
While the EU has so far only siphoned off windfall profits from these idle assets, generating €8 billion for Ukraine support to date, the four-country letter requests that the Commission restart technical discussions on alternative frameworks for using these reserves. This approach stops short of outright confiscation, which would face serious legal challenges under international law.
The main obstacle to a more aggressive plan has been Belgium's concerns about potential legal and financial blowback from Moscow if the principal is touched. Russia views any use of these assets as theft and may pursue international arbitration or retaliatory measures against European investors holding Russian securities.