The European Commission wants to speed up the transfer to Ukraine of the profits received from frozen Russian assets and redirect it to the purchase of weapons, and not to post-war reconstruction.
This is reported by the Financial Times with reference to a draft decision that has not yet been published.
If the decision is approved soon, the first tranche can be sent in July. In total, 2-3 billion euros can be allocated this year. And by 2027 - under 20 billion.
EC President Ursula von der Leyen has called for funds to be allocated to military support, which may face resistance from a number of countries, the FT writes. In particular, Hungary.
Brussels proposes to appropriate 97% of the net profit obtained from frozen Russian assets in the Euroclear investment fund and transfer them to the EU budget. Then the money will be paid quarterly or twice a year and "can be used for the benefit of Ukraine in accordance with various agreements."
The EU plan will not be retroactive, and almost €4 billion of already accumulated profits will remain with Euroclear, mainly to cover legal costs resulting from legal proceedings with Russia, which has swamped the fund with lawsuits.
