Politico: US pushed some EU countries not to support use of Russian assets for Ukraine

The United States has been pushing some European governments not to support the idea of providing a "reparations loan" to Ukraine through the use of frozen Russian assets. This was reported by Politico citing four EU officials who participated in the discussions.

The publication's interlocutors noted that they were talking about at least those governments that Washington considers "the friendliest."

The media reports that the American influence campaign, in which Trump administration officials bypassed Brussels and had unofficial contacts directly with individual capitals, has led Italy, Bulgaria, Malta, and the Czech Republic to join the group of countries that disagree.

Also, the European Commission and the most influential EU capitals have been negotiating, trying to enlist the support of Belgian Prime Minister Bart de Wever, who has not yet agreed to use the frozen assets of the Russian Federation, fearing Russia's reaction. Over the past week, these discussions have intensified, the newspaper noted.

An unnamed senior official told Politico that after discussions on Tuesday, December 16, the chances of reaching an agreement on Russia's frozen assets "did not improve, but rather worsened."

"I wanted to cry," he said, describing the atmosphere at the meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.

• december 3 The European Commission has proposed to use up to 210 billion euros of immobilized assets of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation to provide financial assistance to Ukraine.
• december 13, the EU Council indefinitely frozen 210 billion euros of Russian assets to avoid Hungary's veto.
• The EU plans to consider a decision on a reparations loan to Ukraine at the summit on December 18-19.