Overview
- EU governments voted 25–2 to prevent the return of Russian state assets indefinitely, replacing six‑monthly unanimous renewals with a qualified‑majority mechanism.
- The Bank of Russia filed a lawsuit in Moscow against Euroclear, alleging illegal, loss‑making actions and linking the case to EU plans to leverage the frozen reserves.
- Roughly €210 billion in Russian state assets are immobilized in the EU, including about €185 billion held by Euroclear in Brussels central to the proposed financing model.
- Belgium, which hosts Euroclear, has not endorsed the loan scheme and is demanding written, collective guarantees to cover legal exposure and potential Russian retaliation.
- Experts and the ECB caution that using central‑bank reserves could breach immunity norms, risk violating EU monetary‑financing rules and undermine euro‑area financial stability.