The European Union’s plan to fund Ukraine with €90bn (£79bn) of frozen Russian assets would be considered by Moscow as an “act of war”, former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has said.
Medvedev, who now serves as deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, was reacting to the plan that EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday would allow Kyiv to “defend [itself] and take forward peace negotiations from a position of strength”.
“If the crazy European Union does, after all, try to steal Russian assets frozen in Belgium under the guise of a so-called ‘reparations loan’, Russia may well view this move as tantamount to a casus belli (an act that justifies war) with all the relevant implications for Brussels and individual EU countries,” he wrote on X.
The former president is known for his sabre-rattling and aggressive rhetoric towards the West. Earlier this year, Donald Trump moved two US nuclear submarines after Medvedev accused him of playing an “ultimatum game” by threatening economic sanctions against Russia, which he described as a “step towards war”.
Earlier this week, EU Commission president Ursula von Der Leyen said the plan would cover two-thirds of the funding required to sustain Ukraine’s war effort, with “international partners” financing the rest.
Under the proposal, around £123bn of Russian state assets held in Belgium would be transformed into a “reparations loan”.
“Since pressure is the only language the Kremlin responds to, we can also dial it up,” Ms von der Leyen said. “We have to increase the costs of war for [Russian president Vladimir] Putin’s aggression, and today’s proposal gives us the means to do this.”
Belgium, where most of the assets are held by Brussels-based financial institution Euroclear, has voiced legal concerns over the proposals. A senior Belgian official said that the country “cannot accept being asked to bear the risks of such an operation alone”.
Ms von der Leyen insisted the EU had taken almost all of Belgium’s concerns into account.
Moscow has repeatedly warned that it would consider the seizure of Russian assets as an act of theft, but the EU says the scheme does not amount to confiscation because the money would only take the form of a loan. Ukraine would only need to repay the loan if Russia pays reparations.
There are also concerns that the move could interfere with ongoing US efforts to pressure Kyiv and Moscow into agreeing on a peace deal. However, Ms von der Leyen said the reparations loan plan had been “positively received” by US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent.
The Commission said the EU could proceed with the scheme if 15 out of 27 member countries, representing at least 65 per cent of the bloc’s population, voted in favour.
