The way to secure financing for Ukraine for the next two years must definitely be decided during this week's EU summit, said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday in the European Parliament.
On Thursday and Friday, the heads of state and government leaders will meet in Brussels, where they will have to decide on how to proceed with the financing of Ukraine.
The Commission has not yet been able to convince Belgium, where most of the Russian assets are stored, to agree to the plan, as it fears the possible financial and legal consequences.
Von der Leyen pointed out that, in addition to the recovery fund, the Commission has also put a joint loan on the table. "We must decide which solution we want. But one thing is very clear: we have to make a decision on the financing of Ukraine for the next two years at the European summit."
Qualified majority required
A common loan requires unanimity among the Member States, and that does not exist. In principle, the loan with the cash from the frozen assets can be approved by a qualified majority.
Von der Leyen also emphasised that an important step was already taken last week with the decision to freeze Russian assets indefinitely through emergency legislation, so that a unanimous decision does not have to be taken every six months.
This step is primarily intended to circumvent a country – such as Hungary – which has threatened to veto the measure on several occasions, but the assets must also remain frozen for a longer period of time so as not to jeopardise the recovery.
According to the International Monetary Fund, Ukraine will need €137 billion in 2026 and 2027. The European Commission wants to provide a third of that, or €90 billion.
An in-depth explainer on everything to know about Russia's frozen assets ahead of the EU summit on Thursday can be found here.
