‘We had to go to Plan B’: EU to loan $160 billion to Ukraine for war effort

The decision follows hours of discussions among leaders on the technical details of an unprecedented loan based on the frozen Russian assets, which turned out to be too complex or politically demanding to resolve at this stage.

The main difficulty was providing Belgium, where €185 billion of the total Russian assets in Europe are held, with sufficient guarantees against financial and legal risks from potential Russian retaliation for the release of the money to Ukraine.

“There were so many questions on the reparations loan, we had to go to Plan B. Rationality has prevailed,” Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever told a news conference. “The EU has avoided chaos and division and remained united,” he said.

Hungary scores a win

With public finances across the EU already strained by high debt levels, the European Commission had proposed using the Russian assets for a loan to Kyiv or joint borrowing against the EU budget.

Using the latter option allowed Orban to claim a diplomatic victory.

“Orban got what he wanted: no reparation loan. And EU action without participation of Hungary, Czech Republic and Slovakia,” one EU diplomat said.

‘Can’t afford to fail’

Several EU leaders arriving at the summit said it was imperative they find a solution to keep Ukraine financed and fighting for the next two years. They were also keen to show European countries’ strength and resolve after US President Donald Trump last week called them “weak”.

“We just can’t afford to fail,” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who took part in the summit, urged the bloc to agree to use the Russian assets to provide the funds he said would allow Ukraine to keep fighting.

“The decision now on the table – the decision to fully use Russian assets to defend against Russian aggression – is one of the clearest and most morally justified decisions that could ever be made,” he said.

Reuters