Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever does not rule out legal action by Belgium if the EU decides to seize Russian assets in Euroclear. He stated this to VRT NWS, writes UNN.
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He emphasized that in such a case, the risks cannot be placed solely on Belgium, and called this condition "rational, reasonable, and justified."
"We are negotiating with the European Commission to find out whether the proposal (of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen) can be brought into line with the minimum conditions set by Belgium, which are generally recognized as rational, reasonable, and justified," De Wever said. According to him, the task now is to rewrite von der Leyen's proposal.
He is not sure that this will succeed. "A lot of goodwill has been shown, but there is a gap between this goodwill and the real possibility of doing something, which now needs to be overcome," the Belgian Prime Minister pointed out.
If this does not work, De Wever does not rule out legal action.
"Nothing can be ruled out. If a decision is made that, in my opinion, contradicts the law, and therefore makes no sense and poses significant risks to this country, nothing can be ruled out," he pointed out.
The Belgian Prime Minister notes that Euroclear itself can also take legal action.
According to De Wever, the EU still has other options for financing financial aid to Ukraine, although he admits that unanimity among member states is needed, and there is no unanimity. Hungary, for example, is blocking new aid to Ukraine.
So, the publication writes, "should we still confiscate Russian assets in Euroclear?" "There are certainly better solutions than stealing money from the Russian central bank," De Wever said. "This is a radical step. I consider it very unwise and ill-considered."
A compromise is still possible before next week's European summit, the publication indicates. "We are also a country that always supports European consensus. If they still want to do this - which, in my opinion, is unwise, but Europe does other things that I consider unwise - there are three conditions that guarantee that the risk will not fall on Belgium. If you can meet these conditions, we will be a loyal partner," De Wever said.
As reported, Belgium has already explained these conditions:
- the country cannot bear the costs alone if Russia demands its assets. All European member states must participate in this;
- not only the assets themselves must be compensated, but also any damages that Russia may demand;
- in case of a Russian demand for a refund, Euroclear must be immediately provided with funds.