Lithuania Urges EU To Use Frozen Russian Assets

• 24.05.2026, 17:57

They are proposed to be used to finance Ukraine and put pressure on Moscow.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kiastutis Budrys has said that the EU should again raise the issue of using frozen Russian assets to finance Ukraine and put pressure on Moscow. He said this during a speech at the POLITICO Speakeasy event at the GLOBSEC forum in Prague on May 23, the publication reported.

The foreign minister said Europe is looking for ways to continue to financially support Ukraine and put pressure on Russia to force illegitimate Russian President Vladimir Putin to sit down at the table to negotiate a peace agreement between the countries.

The €90 billion loan agreement between the EU and Ukraine, although a "useful step," only postponed the use of frozen Russian assets, which Budrys said were still a "real resource for supporting Ukraine" and a "real lever" of pressure on Moscow.

The asset plan was not supported because of Belgium's legal concerns and political resistance from Hungary and some other states, he said. After the resignation of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the country lifted its veto on the loan, but the issue of the frozen assets remains open: the EU could use them to repay the loan if Russia fails to pay reparations. Therefore, according to the Lithuanian minister, it should now be put back on the agenda, because Ukraine will continue to need financing even after the current support package is over.