German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are currently negotiating with Belgium, which is hesitant about handling billions of dollars in frozen Russian assets situated in the country.
The Belgian government reports that Euroclear, a financial institution based in Brussels, holds at least €197 billion (around $224 billion) in sanctioned Russian assets. The European Commission aims to seize these funds and redirect them to Ukraine as part of a €165 billion financial aid package (approximately $190 billion) designed to support Ukraine’s economy and military efforts.
However, Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever has expressed concerns that confiscating Russian assets could be perceived by Russia as an act of war, potentially prompting retaliation from Russian President Vladimir Putin against Belgium.
Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, has issued a warning to Brussels and its European partners through a provocative post on X, previously known as Twitter.
Belgium’s Prime Minister Bart De Wever was seen arriving for discussions with the European Commission President at the EU headquarters in Brussels on November 14, 2025. (Photo: Nicolas Tucat/AFP via Getty Images)
“Should the irrational EU decide to appropriate frozen Russian assets for a so-called ‘reparations loan,’ it might be seen as a cause for war, with all the attendant consequences for Brussels and its allies,” the former Russian president stated.
EU leaders are up against a tight clock, as Ukraine is projected to run out of funds for the war in April and EU leaders will convene on Dec.18 to make a final decision on how to support Ukraine’s budgetary needs for the next two years.
Key European leaders have traveled back-and-forth to Belgium to convince the government to sign on to the reparation proposal. The plan has widespread support within the European Union, but Belgium’s prime minister has so far stood in the way.
Russia’s Deputy head of the Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, takes part in a wreath laying ceremony marking Defender of the Fatherland Day at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier by the Kremlin Wall in Moscow, Russia, Feb. 23, 2024. (Yekaterina Shtukina/Sputnik/Pool via Reuters.)
“Belgium’s particular situation regarding the use of the frozen Russian assets is undeniable and must be addressed in such a way that all European states bear the same risk. We agreed to continue our discussions with the aim of reaching a consensus at the European Council meeting on December 18,” von der Leyen posted on X after meeting with Merz and De Wever.
Merz said after the meeting that Belgium’s concerns were legitimate and must be heard.
“What we decide now will determine Europe’s future: Belgium’s particular vulnerability in the issue of utilizing the frozen Russian assets is indisputable and must be addressed in such a way that all European states bear the same risk,” Merz said on X.
France’s President Emmanuel Macron (L), Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer pose as they meet on the sidelines of the two-day NATO’s Heads of State and Government summit in The Hague on June 24, 2025. (Ludovic Marin/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
Robert Kremzner, an associate analyst with the New Lines Institute and an expert in Russian gray zone warfare, said Russia has a number of ways it can target Belgium that fall below the threshold of open hostilities.
“Russia has been very active in using something called gray zone warfare, which sees Russia undertaking hostile actions against other nations that are below the threshold of war, and thus not that easy to respond to,” Kremzner told Fox News Digital.
He said some examples include information warfare, cyberattacks, election interference, GPS spoofing, cutting undersea cables, and increasingly arson attacks and assassinations.
The Belgian government, along with Euroclear, are looking for financial guarantees from fellow EU member states before committing to supporting the plan. De Wever fears that Belgium will ultimately be held responsible and be forced to pay back the assets that are seized in the event a sanctions deal is negotiated with Russia as a way to end the war in Ukraine.
The European Commission said it put in place safeguards to protect Member States and financial institutions from possible retaliatory measures from Russia.
Ukrainian servicemen of the 44th artillery brigade fire a 2s22 Bohdana self-propelled howitzer towards Russian positions at the frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025. (Danylo Antoniuk/AP Photo)
If Belgium remains recalcitrant, von der Leyen could resort to the EU’s Article 122 emergency powers, which would allow the commission to move forward with the proposal on a majority-rule basis.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Belgian government and Euroclear but did not hear back before publication.
