Belgium can't be 'only one' to bear risk of EU Russian asset plan: PM

BRUSSELS: Belgium Prime Minister Bart De Wever said Thursday that guarantees offered by the EU over a plan to use Russian assets for Ukraine are so far “insufficient”.

“Belgium will not accept a solution where we are the only one bearing both the risks and the responsibility,” De Wever told Belgian lawmakers.

“I have not seen a text that could persuade me to give Belgium’s agreement. I haven’t seen it yet; I hope to see it today, but I haven’t seen it yet,” he said.

Meanwhile, EU chief Ursula von der Leyen vowed that summit talks opening Thursday in Brussels will last as long as it takes to reach a deal on financing Ukraine for the coming two years.

“We have to find a solution,” she said as EU leaders gathered for make-or-break negotiations on using frozen Russian assets for Ukraine. “We will not leave the European summit without a solution for the funding of Ukraine.”