The European Commission dismisses the claim of the Central Bank of Russia against Euroclear
14 December 06:12
The European Commission has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Central Bank of Russia against Euroclear, the Belgian central securities depository that holds immobilized Russian sovereign assets worth about 185 billion euros. The European Commission called the lawsuit “speculative” and without legal basis.
This was reported by "Komersant Ukrainian" with reference to Euronews.
The Central Bank of Russia announced the start of the trial on Friday, stating its intention to demand “damages” and accusing Euroclear of blocking the release of assets subject to EU sanctions. The lawsuit was filed with the Moscow Arbitration Court.
The situation is unfolding against the backdrop of the European Union’s preparation of a mechanism to channel the proceeds of frozen Russian sovereign assets into an interest-free reparations loan to Ukraine. Euroclear plays a key role in this scheme. The final decision on the launch of the mechanism is to be made by EU leaders on December 18.
Vice President of the European Commission Valdis Dombrovskis said that Brussels expects further “speculative lawsuits” by Russia to prevent compliance with international law and avoid responsibility for the damage caused to Ukraine.
According to him, all European institutions that hold Russian assets are fully protected from possible legal or financial actions by Moscow.
Since February 2022, the EU has frozen the assets of the Central Bank of Russia worth about 210 billion euros. The current sanctions regime allows Euroclear to compensate for potential losses. In particular, if a Russian court seizes Euroclear’s assets in Russia, the company will be able to use the funds held by the Russian National Settlement Depository in the European Union.
In addition, the proposed reparations mechanism provides for a new procedure for interstate dispute settlement. If Russia confiscates Belgium’s sovereign assets, the latter will be able to compensate for the losses at the expense of frozen Russian reserves.
The introduced legal guarantees should alleviate the concerns of Belgium, which had previously expressed doubts about the legal risks of the reparations loan. The European Commission has emphasized that the proposed mechanism is legal and legally sound.
