Ukraine Condemns Euroclear Payout of Frozen Russian Funds, Warns of Eroding EU Unity
The Ukrainian government has sharply criticized a decision by Euroclear, the Brussels-based clearing house, to distribute €3 billion from frozen Russian assets to compensate Western investors, calling it a dangerous precedent that threatens to erode European unity in confronting Moscow’s aggression.
The Gaze reports on this with reference to Reuters.
In the first official response from Kyiv, Iryna Mudra, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, denounced the payout as a “misguided precedent” that risks diluting international pressure on Moscow. “If private investors are prioritized over war victims, this is not justice,” she told Reuters. “It signals inconsistency and suggests that Europe is wavering in its resolve.”
The controversial transfer, approved by Belgian authorities in March and enabled by amended EU sanctions regulations, allows Euroclear to compensate European investors who lost funds when Russia froze their holdings in retaliation for Western sanctions.
While the funds in question do not include the estimated €195 bn in Russian central bank reserves also held by Euroclear, Ukrainian officials fear the payout sets a dangerous tone ahead of critical EU deliberations on the broader use of immobilized Russian assets.
Mudra emphasized that according to international law, responsibility for war reparations lies with the aggressor, not with taxpayers or financial intermediaries. “These are not neutral assets. They are part of a war economy. Returning them to Russia would mean converting them into tanks, missiles, and drones,” she warned.
Ukrainian MP Kira Rudik added, “Western companies operated in Russia at their own risk. Why should their losses be offset by funds that should go to rebuilding a country devastated by invasion?”
The decision has also drawn international criticism. Jacob Kirkegaard, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, called it “mind-boggling” that corporate interests would be compensated before a democratic nation under siege.
While Belgium's government clarified that the payout was in line with EU-wide regulations agreed unanimously by member states, Ukraine warns it could embolden Russia and weaken European leverage.
With Russia reportedly tying peace conditions to the return of its frozen assets, Ukraine is urging Western leaders to stand firm, both on legal grounds and moral principle.
Read more on The Gaze: Are Ukraine’s Allies Ready to Take Sanctions Against Russia to the Next Level in 2025?