Norway urged to use €1.8 trillion fund to support EU loan to Ukraine

This was reported by Euractiv, as relayed by European Pravda.

Five Norwegian political parties have called on Oslo to intervene to address Belgium's concerns about the use of frozen russian sovereign assets to finance a €140 billion reparations loan for Ukraine.

EU leaders discussed the issue on 23 October at a summit in Brussels but failed to reach an agreement, as Belgium insists that other EU countries must share the legal and financial risks associated with the plan before it agrees to its implementation.

Last week, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre ordered a ‘full review’ of Norway's possible participation.

Oil-rich Norway has the world's largest sovereign wealth fund, worth €1.8 trillion, which includes approximately €109 billion earned from the rapid rise in gas prices in 2022 and 2023 following russia's invasion of Ukraine.

‘We are closely monitoring the situation and continuing our dialogue with our EU colleagues,’ said Ellen Reitan, State Secretary at the Norwegian Ministry of Finance.

These comments come as EU countries consider using russia's frozen assets, rather than their own budgets, to meet Kyiv's financial needs, which the International Monetary Fund estimates at around €55 billion over the next two years.

A European Commission spokesperson said Brussels intends to present options for financing Ukraine's needs but ‘will intensify discussions with like-minded countries and allies at a later stage.’

However, there are currently no signs that Norway will take the lead in the stalled loan plan, although it may join as one of several sponsors.

‘Norwegian conservatives are positive, but this must be done jointly with EU countries,’ said former Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Søreide.

Source: European Pravda, Euractiv