Austria disapproves of using Russian asset profits to buy weapons for Ukraine

Brussels, Belgium (Svidomi) — Austria’s Chancellor Karl Nehammer has expressed his disapproval regarding the use of proceeds from frozen Russian assets to purchase military equipment for Ukraine.

The European Commission has proposed that 90% of these profits should be utilized in the procurement of arms for Kyiv, while the remaining 10% should be assigned to the EU budget to bolster Ukraine’s defence sector. The proposed measure would allocate about 3 billion euros ($3.3 billion) a year to Ukraine.

This idea is supported by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo. However, the proposal has raised questions, particularly in neutral countries such as Malta, Austria and Ireland.

"For us neutral (countries), it must be ensured that money, for which we give our approval, is not spent on weapons and ammunition," said Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer.

Previously, the media reported that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán would not support this idea either.