Overview

• Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot said confiscating Russian sovereign assets is not an option for Belgium and warned of a “terrible systemic shock” and damage to the euro’s credibility.
• Roughly €200 billion in Russian central bank reserves remain frozen in the EU since 2022, with most held at Euroclear in Belgium.
• Belgium also ruled out shifting the funds into a separate vehicle or riskier investments to generate higher returns, citing potential legal and financial exposure.
• EU foreign ministers revisited the issue last week, but resistance from Belgium and countries including Germany makes near‑term action unlikely as the European Commission studies further options.
• Interest from the immobilised assets is already being used to back a $50 billion loan to Ukraine that continues to be disbursed.