The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, gave some details, on Tuesday 19 March, of the proposal to be sent to the Member States on Wednesday 20 March on the use of windfall profits from Russian public assets frozen in the EU.
The European External Action Service and the European Commission are expected to propose that these funds be transferred partly to the EU budget and partly to the ‘European Peace Facility’ (EPF).
“90% of the income from the assets will increase the EPF’s financial capacity (to supply military equipment to Ukraine, editor’s note) and 10% will go to the budget, to increase the defence capacity of Ukrainian industry, to strengthen its industrial capacity”, he explained to a group of journalists, including Agence Europe. The proposal requires unanimity among the Member States.
“If we do that, well, the Russians will not be very happy, the amount of money – three billion (euros) per year – is not even extraordinary, but it is not negligible”, he added.
When asked by Agence Europe about the use of the windfall profits that were initially intended for the reconstruction of countries, Mr Borrell explained that he saw no difference between “giving money to rebuild something that has been destroyed and giving money to prevent it from being destroyed”.
He acknowledged that at the EU Foreign Affairs Council the previous day, some Member States had expressed concerns about the legal basis for such action, compliance with international law and the impact on financial markets. Recalling that the subject had been under discussion for months, the High Representative stressed that his “responsibility is to stop discussing hypotheses and to give priority to discussions on concrete proposals”. He said he was very much in favour of taking money to help Ukraine, but that he was not “ a fanatic”. “You have to measure the risk”, he added.
Mr Borrell said he hoped that the heads of state or government would reach an agreement at the summit on 21 and 22 March, and that they would send a message to their ministers to implement the proposal. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)