Russian diplomat: “Recourse to frozen Russian assets to finance Ukraine will have considerable consequences for the EU”
A Ukrainian soldier on a street in the frontline town of Kostyantynivka, the site of heavy fighting with Russian troops, in Donetsk region, Ukraine, on November 15, 2025. Image released by the press service of the 24th Mechanized Brigade of Ukraine. PHOTO: Oleg Petrasiuk / AP / Profimedia
Recourse to Russian assets frozen in Europe to finance Ukraine's financial needs will have “considerable consequences” for the European Union, Russian ambassador to Berlin, Sergey Neceayev, said on Friday, in the context in which the German chancellor and the Belgian prime minister were to meet to discuss this issue, reports AFP, according to Agerpres.
“Any operation involving Russia's sovereign assets without Russia's consent would constitute theft. And it is clear that the theft of Russian state funds will have far-reaching consequences,” the Russian ambassador said in a statement sent to AFP.
According to him, the EU's reputation in the business world “could be destroyed”, also mentioning “endless legal proceedings” and a “path to legal anarchy and the destruction of the foundations of the global financial system”, whose first victim would be Europe.
“We are confident that Brussels and Berlin understand this,” he said.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is visiting Belgium on Friday to convince his Belgian counterpart, Bart De Wever, of the legitimacy of the European Commission's plan to use frozen Russian assets to support Kiev.
Ukraine is suffering on both the combat and diplomatic fronts as US President Donald Trump pressures the country to end the war while being suspected of favoring Russia, which invaded Ukraine nearly four years ago.
The European Commission presented on Wednesday a plan that provides for the recourse to the frozen Russian assets in Europe, but the plan continues to face the hostility of Belgium, because in this country the Euroclear company is based, which holds about 210 billion euros of these assets, out of the 235 billion euros in total in the EU.
The Europeans pledged in late October to find solutions to fund Ukraine over the next two years to ensure that Kiev does not face a resource shortage despite the gradual withdrawal of the Americans.
According to the Russian ambassador in Berlin, the fact that the EU wants to use these assets shows that the Europeans do not have the “considerable resources” that Ukraine needs to be able to continue the fighting.
Prolonging the war “will have a high cost for Russia”, says von der Leyen / EU advances plan to use frozen Russian funds to finance Ukraine
