BERLIN (dpa-AFX) – Before the eagerly awaited EU summit Chancellor Friedrich Merz once again urged his European partners to agree to the use of Russian state assets frozen in the EU to support Ukraine. “From my point of view, this is actually the only option,” said the CDU leader in Brussels. He made it clear that taking on debt was not the only conceivable alternative for him.
Merz once again expressed understanding for the legal and political concerns, especially in Belgium, where most of the three-digit billion amount is stored. “But I hope we can clear them out together.” The EU must send a sign of strength and determination to Russia. Merz expressed confidence about the chances of agreement. “My impression is that we can reach a result.”
The Chancellor also called for an agreement on the second major summit issue, the trade agreement with the Latin American Mercosur states, including the two major economic powers Argentina and Brazil. The Chancellor pointed out that negotiations on this had been going on for a quarter of a century. “Now it’s time to come to a decision.” This is about the credibility of the European Union./mfi/DP/jha