Sixty-two parliamentarians from across Europe have sent an open letter to King Philippe of Belgium, urging him to publicly support the confiscation of €250 billion in frozen Russian assets and their transfer to Ukraine. Most signatories are members of the European Parliament and national parliaments of the EU member states.
Latvian MEP Rihards Kols published the letter on X on 6 March. In their letter, the lawmakers noted:
“Belgium holds an extraordinary responsibility — and a unique opportunity — to demonstrate leadership by seizing frozen Russian assets held on Belgian soil and transferring them directly to Ukraine.”
The legislators wrote that Belgium currently holds the largest volume of frozen Russian assets in the European Union, exceeding €250 billion. A significant portion of these funds is stored at Euroclear bank.
The frozen assets “are the profits of a state responsible for waging a brutal war of aggression, committing systematic atrocities, and violating the most fundamental principles of international law. Every day these assets remain idle is a day Russia profits from Belgium’s caution,” the parliamentarians emphasized in their letter.
The signatories include lawmakers from the Baltic States, Poland, Czechia, France, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Croatia, Hungary, Slovakia, and Ukraine.
The legislators stressed that there are both legal grounds and “moral imperative to act.”
“International law recognizes the right of states to seize the assets of an aggressor to compensate victims and finance reconstruction. Precedent exists,” they noted.
According to the parliamentarians, full confiscation and transfer of Russian assets is the only proportionate response to the scale of Russian aggression and Ukraine’s needs.
The letter argues that Belgium has an opportunity to demonstrate strength and fortitude, showing that European principles are not negotiable and that support for Ukraine remains unwavering despite political turbulence.
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By acting decisively now, Belgium can send a clear signal that Russian aggression will not be rewarded and that Ukraine’s victory and recovery remain at the top of Europe’s agenda, the legislators believe.
“We urge Belgium to act not only because it is the right thing to do — but also because Europe stands at a dangerous crossroads,” the letter reads.
The signatories conclude:
“We therefore call upon Your Majesty to publicly support the immediate legal seizure and transfer of these assets to Ukraine, and to encourage the Belgian government to champion this policy at both national and EU levels. Belgium can be the front-runner Europe needs in this moment of uncertainty — turning frozen assets into a tangible lifeline for Ukraine’s defense and reconstruction.”
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