The European Commission Has Decided To Take Another 25 Billion Euros From Russia's Frozen Bank Accounts
- 17.10.2025, 14:37
There is a plan to give this money to Ukraine.
European Union countries are discussing a plan to transfer 140bn euros of frozen Russian currency reserves to Ukraine. But this is not all that can be taken from the aggressor and used to help Ukraine, the European Commission has decided. After all, the EU still has Russian money in bank accounts.
The main volume of frozen funds, about 185 billion euros, is in the Belgian depository Euroclear. Of these, about 170 billion euros are cash balances resulting from the redemption of bonds in which Russian funds were invested; the reparation loan to Kiev is supposed to be paid out of this amount. But there are still about 25 billion euros in EU bank accounts, and the EC wants to use them for the same purposes, writes Politico, citing a document circulated by the commission before Friday's meeting of the bloc's ambassadors.
"The possibility of extending the reparation loan initiative to other assets seized in the EU should be considered," the document says. - The legal feasibility of extending the approach used for the reparation credit to such assets has not been assessed in detail. Such an assessment needs to be made in order to decide on further steps."
The document outlines the "principles of a plan" to provide Ukraine with such a loan, which will be discussed ahead of next week's summit of EU leaders. The EC would like to reach an agreement in principle as soon as possible, so as to have time to work out the legal details and start paying Ukraine by the second quarter of 2026.
The loan is supposed to be disbursed in tranches. The money will be used to "develop Ukraine's defense technological and industrial base and its integration into the European defense industry," as well as the budget "subject to appropriate conditions," the EC document said. Germany and France insist that a significant part of the funds should be used for the purchase of European arms by Ukraine. This will also support the EU defense industry.
As for the main part of the reparation loan, Belgium insists on unconditional EU guarantees, which will protect Euroclear from legal claims from Russia. The EC proposes a system of bilateral guarantees by EU countries that will be transformed into EU-wide guarantees when the EU's new seven-year budget is implemented in 2028.