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The Belgian
ambassador’s residence on Foxhall Road in Washington is guarded by a
Bernese Mountain Dog and two cats that don’t get along. Graffith, the
bigger homebody of the pair, is fond of butter and has the kind of
wide-eyed _expression_ typically reserved for mice and canines. But by all
accounts, he gets along well with the dog. It
was here, on a snowy morning this month, over a breakfast of eggs
Benedict with salmon, that the subject of seizing Russia’s sovereign
assets came up. The Belgian ambassador to the US, Jean-Arthur Regibeau,
said his country was “thinking about it, just like many people in
Washington and elsewhere.” His
country’s opinion counts for a lot: Two-thirds of the frozen assets are
being held at Brussels-based settlement giant Euroclear. In
the US capital this week, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is set
to vote on a bill that would authorize President Joe Biden to seize the
assets and use them to help fund Ukraine’s reconstruction. Similar
legislation has already passed the House Foreign Affairs Committee and
Biden administration officials are actively engaged with the European
counterparts on the question of whether the Group of Seven nations
should seize the assets outright rather than just leaving them frozen or
taxing the windfall profits that come from managing them. But concerns remain. “Someone
has to pay for all the damages to Ukraine and the obvious responsible
is Russia,” Regibeau told reporters. “On the other hand, we might run
the risk of splitting the world financial system into two different
sides. One would be the west and the rest would be the other. Would that
have long-term consequences on the financial structure of the world?
You can see arguments on both sides. Right now it’s an ongoing
discussion.” Read More: White House Throws Support Behind Seizing Frozen Russian Assets “We
understand we have a special responsibility,” Regibeau said, referring
to the fact that most of the assets are in Belgium. “But we also believe
that for such an issue, Belgium should not be deciding alone.” Discussions
in the EU are currently focused on introducing a windfall tax on the
profits generated by the frozen central bank assets. But even that
lesser step is progressing slowly as several member states and the
European Central Bank are worried about the potential impact the move
could have on the euro’s stability. Related Reading:s —Daniel Flatley in Washington |