Japan rejects EU's request to use Russian assets for Ukraine

Politico stated this in an article, according to Ukrinform.

During a virtual meeting of G7 finance ministers on Monday, Tokyo responded coolly to Brussels' request to apply European mechanisms for transferring to Ukraine the monetary value of Russian sovereign assets held at the Belgian bank Euroclear.

"Japan signaled it is unable to use around $30 billion worth of Russian frozen assets held on its soil to issue a loan to Ukraine," two EU diplomats told Politico.

The European Commission hopes that EU member states can reach an agreement on using up to EUR 210 billion in sanctioned Russian assets before the leaders' summit on 18 December. However, the Belgian government, where these funds are held, is resisting out of concern that Belgium might have to repay the entire amount alone if circumstances change and Russia gains the ability to demand its money back.

One of Belgium's conditions is that other G7 countries outside the EU also provide Ukraine with loans funded by the frozen Russian assets they hold in their jurisdictions. Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever believes that the more G7 allies participate in the initiative, the lower the risk of Russia retaliating solely against Belgium.

However, the United States and Japan have refused to join the Brussels proposal, leaving the European Union to carry the main burden of Ukraine's future financial needs alone. Japan's Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama ruled out using Russian assets due to legal issues, and Washington indicated plans to reduce support for Ukraine after the disbursement of the final tranches of the G7 loan agreed under former President Joe Biden's administration in 2024.

As Ukrinform reported, in a joint statement following the December 9 virtual meeting, the G7 finance ministers said that G7 countries are ready to consider the possibility of confiscating all frozen Russian funds to help achieve a just peace in Ukraine.