US Senators Press Belgium to Unlock Frozen Russian Cash for Ukraine

WASHINGTON DC – A bipartisan group of US senators is turning up the heat on Europe just as a pivotal decision looms in Brussels.

In a letter sent to the Belgian ambassador to Washington ahead of a crucial European meeting Thursday, Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) and six colleagues are urging Belgium and EU leaders to move quickly on a plan to leverage frozen Russian sovereign assets to finance a massive loan for Ukraine, according to a copy obtained by Kyiv Post.

European finance and political leaders are set to meet later this week to weigh next steps on the European Commission’s proposal to raise as much as $244 billion by leveraging Russian state assets immobilized in Europe – most of them held at Belgium-based clearinghouse Euroclear.

The funds would be used to provide Ukraine with an upfront loan, with repayment required only if Moscow eventually pays war reparations.

Letter timed for Brussels

The timing is deliberate. With European leaders facing pressure to show progress on long-term Ukraine financing, the Bennet-led letter is designed to shape the debate before Thursday’s meeting.

“As Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to wage his unjust and unprovoked war against Ukraine – all while carrying out a variety of hybrid attacks against Europe and the United States – we write to express our support for European Commission proposals” to unlock the assets, the senators wrote.

The letter was signed by Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), John Kennedy (R-LA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Peter Welch (D-VT) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), underscoring rare bipartisan alignment as Ukraine aid remains politically fraught in Washington.

The message: Washington is watching closely – and expects movement.

Belgium’s legal worries, Washington’s impatience

The letter reflects mounting frustration in Washington over the pace of Europe’s deliberations, as Ukraine faces intensifying military pressure and a widening fiscal gap.

While the US and G7 have already agreed to channel profits generated by frozen Russian assets to Kyiv, the Commission’s plan would go further by using the assets themselves as leverage.

That step has triggered legal and political anxieties in Belgium, which has worried about exposure to lawsuits and long-term damage to Europe’s financial credibility.

The senators directly address those concerns, noting that EU officials have negotiated an approach designed to “minimize any potential legal risks to Belgium,” and arguing that a deal could “strongly benefit Ukraine and trans-Atlantic security” if Brussels and the Commission act swiftly.

Test of NATO – and Western resolve

Bennet, a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, casts the issue as a broader geopolitical inflection point.

“Putin will not stop if he wins in Ukraine but will continue testing NATO’s resolve,” the senators warn, framing additional financial support as essential “for a Europe that is whole and free – and for the defense of democracy everywhere.”

For US lawmakers, the asset debate is no longer just about Ukraine’s survival – it’s about deterrence.

The letter also situates the European debate within a shifting political landscape in Washington.

Congress last year passed the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act as part of the national security supplemental, authorizing the president to seize Russian sovereign assets in the US.

Several of the signatories say they are now pushing follow-on legislation to begin repurposing those funds – a sign of growing comfort on Capitol Hill with steps that once seemed legally and politically radioactive.

Beyond weapons, the senators argue the money could help Ukraine close a looming budget shortfall, purchase urgently needed air defenses through mechanisms like the Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List, and potentially unlock a finalized International Monetary Fund program critical to keeping the Ukrainian government functioning.

With European leaders set to gather Thursday, the message from Capitol Hill is unmistakable: the money is already frozen, the legal groundwork is forming – and delay, senators warn, only works in Putin’s favor.