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Some of the G7 members, including the United States, worry that there may come a time when unanimity in the EU's 27 countries is not reached, jeopardizing the entire loan.
European Union member states discussed options for extending the renewal period of sanctions on Russian central bank assets to secure a major G7 loan for Ukraine, a draft EU document confirmed by several diplomats on Wednesday showed.
Leaders of the Group of Seven major democracies and the EU agreed in June to use interest in frozen Russian assets to back a $50 billion loan to Ukraine to help it defend itself against Moscow's invasion.
Most of the roughly $300 billion in assets are held in EU financial institutions, mainly in Belgium. Under EU regulations, the sanctions regime against Russia needs the unanimous approval of EU states to be renewed every six months.
Some of the G7 members, including the United States, worry that there may come a time when unanimity in the EU's 27 countries is not reached, jeopardizing the entire loan, EU diplomats said.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has closer ties to Russia than other national leaders in the EU, and has repeatedly blocked moves to impose new restrictions and financial support for Ukraine.
The European Commission, the EU's executive and its foreign service arm, sent a "non-paper" – a type of document used in EU circles to put out ideas for countries to discuss.
" The options are limited to the immobilization of CBR (Central Bank of Russia) assets, would require unanimity from the Council and would be consistent with the temporary and reversible nature of the sanctions. It is now up to member states to discuss these options. Depending of the outcome of the discussion, the HR (Chief Diplomat) and the Commission are ready to submit proposals ," said a spokesman for the Commission.
EU ambassadors discussed on Wednesday two options aimed at alleviating the concerns of G7 members. One would be an "indefinite" extension of the sanctions regime that immobilized the assets of Russia's central bank.
This will be reviewed by the Council at regular intervals (eg 12 months) based on clear pre-defined criteria (eg ending the war of aggression and guarantees of non-repetition, payment of compensation by Russia, etc.) ..." , the document said.
Another option would be to extend the renewal period up to three years. Unanimity among EU member states will still be required in each case, and these extensions will only apply to Russian central bank assets.
The document said the two options are intended to increase legal certainty and predictability for G7 partners for extraordinary revenue streams, which will be made available to Ukraine to service and repay additional bilateral loans from the EU and G7 partners.
EU diplomats said discussions were at an early stage, but countries hinted at their initial preferences. The Baltic and Eastern European states were among those favoring the open version, while France and Germany were looking at a longer but still limited renewal period. The European Commission will present a formal proposal in late August or early September, diplomats said.
Belgium had warned that the Commission should take into account the legal risks and the stability of the financial market./ Adapted "Pamphlet" from "TheGeopost"
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