Belgian politicians and senior finance executives have been targeted in a campaign of intimidation linked to Russian intelligence, aimed at persuading Belgium to block the use of €185bn in frozen Russian assets for Ukraine, according to European intelligence agencies.
Security officials told the Guardian that key figures at Euroclear, the Brussels-based financial services group holding most of Russia’s frozen central bank assets, as well as senior Belgian political leaders, had been deliberately targeted.
EU leaders meeting in Brussels on Thursday are debating whether to approve loans for Ukraine backed by Russian assets. The funding is seen as vital to sustaining Kyiv’s war effort through 2026 and 2027.
Officials believe the campaign is being conducted by Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency, although there is debate over the scale of the threat. One European official said Russian operatives had “certainly engaged in tactics of intimidation”.
Belgium has come under particular pressure because €185bn of the €210bn in Russian central bank assets frozen by the EU since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine is held at Euroclear.
On Thursday and Friday, EU leaders are expected to decide whether to approve an initial €90bn loan secured against the immobilised assets. Belgium has raised legal concerns and says it will only support the plan if it receives guarantees that Euroclear would be fully reimbursed should Russia successfully sue for the return of its money.
Moscow has publicly warned that using the assets would amount to theft. Russia’s central bank has said it is seeking $230bn in damages from Euroclear through proceedings in Russian courts. Intelligence officials believe the intimidation campaign has focused on individuals rather than institutions.
Threats have reportedly been directed at Valérie Urbain, the chief executive of Euroclear, and other senior executives. Euroclear declined to comment, saying any potential threats were treated “with the utmost priority” and investigated, often with support from the authorities.
Earlier this month, the news site EUobserver reported that Urbain had faced threats in 2024 and 2025 and had sought police protection. This was denied, though the report said she and other executives hired private security firms to provide bodyguards.
In a profile published by Le Monde in November, Urbain was described as having been accompanied by a bodyguard for more than a year, though she did not comment directly on her security arrangements.
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In early December, Belgium’s prime minister, Bart De Wever, said in an interview with La Libre newspaper that Moscow had made clear there would be consequences if Russian assets were confiscated. “Russia has let us know that in the event of a seizure, Belgium and I personally will feel the effects for eternity,” he said.
His office later said the remarks referred to legal and financial risks, including possible Russian countermeasures such as the seizure of western assets in Russia and retaliatory actions by Moscow-friendly jurisdictions.
A spokesperson for the Belgian government declined to comment on reported threats against ministers or the head of Euroclear, citing security concerns. A spokesperson for the foreign minister, Maxime Prévot, said they had no information about threats directed at him.
The UK, which is believed to hold about €27bn in frozen Russian assets, supports the use of immobilised funds to help Ukraine. Belgium has argued that other countries holding Russian assets, estimated at €290bn worldwide, should take similar steps to reduce legal risks and demonstrate solidarity.
Ukrainian officials say the proposed EU loan is crucial to maintaining the country’s war effort. Nataliia Shapoval, head of the Kyiv-based KSE Institute, said Ukraine would need about $50bn in external financing in 2026, with only half currently committed.
She said predictable funding was essential, particularly for defence spending, to allow weapons procurement and long-term investment in Ukraine’s arms industry.
While Ukraine could manage without additional EU support in the first quarter of the year, Shapoval warned that serious difficulties would emerge from the second quarter onwards, forcing cuts to defence budgets and difficult trade-offs with social spending.
Ukrainian officials hope an EU agreement would also place medium-term financial pressure on Russia, which is expected to spend 38% of its state budget on the military next year and end this year with a budget deficit of about $70bn.
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