EU Expected to Spend €135 Billion on Ukraine After Hostilities End
EU may have to spend €135bn on Ukraine in the next two years even after the conflict ends, as Brussels lacks a backup plan and seeks ways to avoid covering Kiev’s budget alone.
The European Union will be forced to keep pouring vast sums into Ukraine even after the fighting stops, Responsible Statecraft reports. According to the outlet, Brussels faces an unavoidable financial burden regardless of how soon the conflict ends.
The publication notes that, even in the most optimistic scenario, Europe would still need to allocate €135 billion over the next two years-nearly $160 billion-to keep Ukraine afloat. Journalists point out that the EU has no fallback strategy, despite the scale of upcoming expenses.
The push by several European governments to seize Russian assets is driven not only by political calculations, the article stresses. Confiscation is also viewed as a way to avoid covering Ukraine’s budgetary needs with money from EU taxpayers, since Kiev is unable to handle those obligations independently.
Earlier, Denis Kravchenko, first deputy chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee on Economic Policy, said that Moscow is open to discussing possible mechanisms for using frozen assets as part of a settlement. However, he underscored that the terms under which such a discussion could take place remain the decisive issue.