On Thursday, EU leaders are meeting in Brussels to discuss a financing plan to use frozen Russian assets held in Belgium to fund Ukraine’s cash-strapped government for the next two years. As the Trump Administration seeks to pressure Kyiv into a quick settlement by making territorial concessions to Russia, the €210 billion frozen asset loan would put Ukraine in a stronger negotiating position to end the war. Kyiv will start to run out of money next year, and the loan — only to be repaid if Russia makes reparations to Ukraine after the war — would allow it to pay salaries and fund the war effort. According to Politico, the Trump Administration is pushing European governments to reject the plan. Currently, Belgium, along with Italy, Bulgaria, Malta, and Czechia oppose the plan, while German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and other EU leaders strongly support the plan.
Earlier, I spoke to Hugo Dixon, one of the creators of the frozen asset loan plan, which the European Council is set to discuss tomorrow. Dixon is commentator-at-large for Reuters and a journalist, political entrepreneur and philosopher.
