EU tightens grip on frozen Russian assets, bypassing Hungary
REUTERS/Yves Herman
The European Council will give the European Commission extraordinary powers to keep $247 billion in Russian state assets frozen until Moscow pays postwar reparations to Ukraine, Politico reported on Dec. 11.
In a statement, EU ambassadors said they had agreed on an updated proposal based on Article 122 of the EU Treaty and launched a written procedure to adopt a formal decision by the Council by Dec. 12. The decision was approved by a “very clear majority.”
The new legal mechanism delivers a blow to Kremlin hopes of unfreezing the funds as part of a potential postwar settlement, as described in the original draft of the U.S.-backed peace plan.
According to a legal text obtained by Politico, the special powers will remain in force “until Russia ends its war of aggression against Ukraine and pays reparations to Ukraine.”
The move significantly strengthens Ukraine’s negotiating position by sharply reducing the likelihood that pro-Kremlin governments in the EU, such as those in Hungary or Slovakia, will seek to unblock the assets, the report said.
Under current rules, sanctions must be unanimously extended every six months. The new mechanism effectively rewrites that procedure, preventing Moscow-friendly governments from voting against extensions to release the assets.
The European Commission warned that the possibility of getting its assets back incentivized Russia to escalate its hybrid attacks on EU member states. The statement described maintaining the freeze indefinitely as “a proportionate measure to avert further unprecedented economic fallout for the Union caused by Russia’s actions.”
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