Japan Dismisses EU Loan Block Claims as “Completely False”
Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama was reported by media to have “ruled out” the bloc’s suggestion to tap roughly $30 billion held in Japan for a so-called “reparations loan” to Kiev.
“It’s completely false,” Vice Finance Minister for International Affairs Atsushi Mimura told reporters on Tuesday, according to media.
“Minister Katayama never made such a comment,” Mimura said. “She told the meeting that Japan is preparing to make specific steps” to support Ukraine, he added, according to media.
The remarks come after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen last week called on EU members to decide between a major borrowing initiative or the long-discussed ‘reparations loan’ using frozen Russian funds, aiming to raise €90 billion ($104 billion) for Ukraine across 2026-2027.
Most of Moscow’s frozen reserves, about €185 billion, are held at the Belgian clearing house Euroclear. Belgium has resisted EU pressure to unlock the funds, citing legal risks.
With Ukraine’s projected budget gap reaching $48 billion next year, EU officials are reportedly intensifying efforts to tap the frozen assets.
Moscow has consistently condemned such moves as theft and threatened retaliation. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov acknowledged the potential impact, saying the money could temporarily sustain Ukraine’s struggling military efforts.
“This money would, in principle, be enough for them to expend Ukrainians like bullets for a couple more years,” he said on Sunday.
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