Four individuals briefed on the plans advised POLITICO the Commission is hoping to base its motion on a set of European Council conclusions that every one EU leaders, together with Orbán, agreed to on Dec. 19 final yr.
In that assertion, the leaders declared: “Russia’s belongings ought to stay immobilised till Russia ceases its battle of aggression in opposition to Ukraine and compensates it for the harm brought on by this battle.” At the time, that assertion had largely been understood to imply the belongings themselves ought to stay frozen, primarily at Euroclear financial institution in Belgium, and never accessed by Russia, whereas curiosity might be used for the battle effort.
The Commission’s new argument is that this assertion gives adequate cowl to vary the sanctions guidelines from unanimity to a certified majority. For that to work, all or a lot of the different international locations must agree.
“This would require a high-level political settlement by all or most Heads of State or Government,” the Commission mentioned in a be aware to EU ambassadors assembly on Friday.
Not simply Hungary
Winning that broader settlement is not going to be simple. There are different Russia-friendly nations within the potential combine, akin to Slovakia.
Then there’s the Belgium drawback. The Belgian authorities has already pushed again amid issues that the EU’s money seize may expose Belgium and Euroclear, a monetary establishment that homes Russia’s frozen state belongings, to authorized retaliation from Moscow.
