Japan refused to join the EU plan on frozen Russian assets for Ukraine - Politico
Kyiv • UNN
Japan rejected the EU's proposal to use frozen Russian assets to finance Ukraine. Tokyo refused to use $30 billion in frozen assets held on its territory to issue a loan to Ukraine.
Japan has rejected the EU's proposal to join its plan to use frozen Russian state assets to finance Ukraine, dashing the bloc's hopes of gaining global support for the initiative, Politico reports, writes UNN.
Details
During a meeting of G7 finance ministers on Monday, Tokyo coldly rejected Brussels' request to copy its plans to send Ukraine the monetary value of Russian sovereign assets held in the Belgian bank Euroclear.
Japan has made it clear that it cannot use the approximately $30 billion in frozen Russian assets held in its territory to issue a loan to Ukraine, two EU diplomats briefed on the discussions told the publication.
Resistant Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever insisted that greater involvement of G7 allies would reduce the risk of Russia taking retaliatory measures solely against Belgium. However, the US and Japan refused to join Brussels' scheme, leaving the EU to bear the brunt of Ukraine's future financial needs alone, the publication notes.
During the meeting, the US stated that it would cut support for Ukraine after the last tranches of the G7 loan, which was agreed upon by the Biden administration in 2024, were paid out, an EU diplomat said.
"We will continue to work together to develop a wide range of financing options to support Ukraine, including the potential use of the full value of Russian sovereign assets immobilized in our jurisdictions until Russia pays reparations," G7 finance ministers wrote in their joint statement after the meeting.
But in a caveat, they added that "our actions will remain consistent with our respective legal frameworks."
Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama ruled out the use of Russian assets due to legal issues, an EU diplomat briefed on the meeting said.
However, several officials said that Japan's position is due to US opposition to using Russian assets for Ukraine, arguing that Tokyo does not want to disrespect its key ally.
US President Donald Trump has made it clear that he intends to use Russian assets to bring Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table. Instead of sending money to Kyiv, Washington proposed returning some of Russia's assets and using the rest to finance US investments in Ukraine.
But European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen continued to support the idea of using Russian assets to help Ukraine during a meeting on Monday with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
"Our proposal for a reparations loan is complex, but essentially it increases the cost of the war for Russia," von der Leyen wrote in a statement after the meeting, where she was joined by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
"So the longer Putin wages his war, sheds blood, takes lives, and destroys Ukrainian infrastructure, the higher the costs will be for Russia," the statement emphasizes.
In support of von der Leyen, Great Britain and Canada announced their readiness to transfer Russian state assets located on their territory to Ukraine, provided the EU plan is implemented.
The issue is expected to be in focus during the meeting between Starmer and De Wever on Friday.
Addition
The European Commission wants EU capitals to reach an agreement on the use of up to 210 billion euros in sanctioned cash before the leaders' summit on December 18. Belgium, however, is resisting, fearing that it will have to return the full amount if Russia gets the money back.
One of its demands is that other G7 countries outside the EU issue a loan to Ukraine using the frozen Russian assets they hold domestically.