Overview
- Volodymyr Zelensky is in Brussels as leaders seek a financing decision for Kyiv without a consensus in place.
- The European Commission proposes a safeguard-heavy mechanism tied to roughly €210 billion in frozen assets to support an eventual repair loan of up to €90 billion.
- Belgium refuses to advance the plan, citing legal and financial exposure linked to Euroclear, and demands mutualized, unlimited guarantees covering all frozen Russian assets.
- Italy, Malta, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic back exploring joint EU debt as an alternative, which faces resistance from Hungary’s Viktor Orbán.
- Pressure is mounting as the Russian central bank has sued Euroclear in Moscow and the IMF estimates Ukraine’s two‑year funding needs at about €137 billion starting from the second quarter.