European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced on Friday that the EU intends to lend Ukraine €35 billion ($39 billion), using revenues from Russian assets frozen within the bloc. This financial aid comes as Ukraine grapples with severe economic strains and aims to maintain its electricity grid during winter amid ongoing Russian attacks.
The proposed loan, which must be approved by a majority of EU member states, is part of a larger initiative agreed upon by G7 nations in June. This plan aims to use frozen Russian assets to provide Kyiv with $50 billion in total.
Von der Leyen expressed confidence that other G7 countries, including the United States, would also contribute their share. EU officials indicated that the loan amount might be adjusted based on additional contributions from other G7 members.
Speaking in Kyiv alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, von der Leyen assured that the EU could deliver the loan promptly, supported by the profits from immobilized Russian assets. The EU has frozen approximately $235 billion of Russian central bank funds since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, representing a significant portion of frozen Russian assets globally. Most of these funds are managed by Euroclear, an international deposit organization based in Belgium.
The G7’s strategy aims to use these assets to increase financial support for Ukraine, replacing a previous EU scheme that provided $1.7 billion to Kyiv in July. Implementation of the G7 plan had faced delays due to the US seeking assurances from the EU about the continued freezing of Russian assets.
Currently, EU member states must renew the asset freeze every six months, but Brussels is considering extending this period to 36 months. Despite the uncertainty regarding the freeze’s extension, the EU has decided to proceed with its portion of the G7 loan, believing the assets offer sufficient guarantees.
