Belgium rejects renewed push on frozen Russian assets

A renewed push by several European Union (EU) member states to use frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine drew little enthusiasm from EU ministers, Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot said on Wednesday following an informal meeting with his EU counterparts in Ireland.

Belgium's position on the issue has remained unchanged for a year, Prevot said, adding that the grounds for its opposition remained valid. He warned that using the assets through a mechanism amounting to confiscation would entail significant risks. According to the EU, around 210 billion euros in Russian central bank assets are currently immobilized in the bloc, the vast majority of them held by Euroclear, a Brussels-based international central securities depository.