Ukraine’s War Chest Shrinks as Europe Mulls Gamble with Russia Billions
Ukraine faces a €23.1 billion defense funding gap, prompting European allies to revisit the use of €210 billion in frozen Russian assets. But Belgium’s concerns over legal and financial liability remain the key obstacle to unlocking the money.
Ukraine's war fund is rapidly diminishing as European leaders debate allocating billions of dollars to support Kyiv. The 90 billion euro package, originally intended to address the country's funding crisis, lasted just eight months before President Volodymyr Zelenskyy began requesting early payments from the 2026 allocation. The country is now facing a 23.1 billion euro gap in its defense budget.
In response, a letter from the foreign ministers of Sweden, Poland, Spain, and the Netherlands has reignited discussions on utilizing Europe's frozen Russian assets. The four nations argue that the 90 billion euro package is insufficient and propose exploring new ways to utilize the immobilized assets. While advancing some of the 2027 money could help fill this year's funding gap, it would also leave Ukraine with less money next year.
The letter reiterates the potential of the 210 billion euro in frozen Russian assets held by Euroclear in Brussels, but stops short of providing a concrete solution or addressing Belgium's concerns about liability. Poland's Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski argues that using the funds to defend Ukraine now is preferable to waiting until the end of Russia's aggression to spend them on reconstruction.
The gamble involves spending money on defense to potentially save Ukraine's cities, infrastructure, and future peace negotiations. However, the political risk remains, as Ukraine will still require substantial resources for post-war recovery.
Written by urgent.news from Kyiv Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
