EU summit, Meloni: 'Solution with solid legal basis, common sense prevailed'

At the end of one of the longest and most delicate summits in recent times, Europe has found a square in the sign of unanimity, and has chosen to support Kiev for 2026 and 2027 with a 90 billion loan, through common debt. "Common sense has prevailed," exulted PM Giorgia Meloni, who until the last moment put the brakes on the hypothesis of the use of Moscow's frozen assets. All this while in Rome in the Senate the government found a difficult agreement on the manoeuvre, blowing up the whole pension package. Did you have a chance to talk to Minister Giorgetti and Italy? "No, I have not had a chance, as you can imagine, having left at 4 a.m., to talk about anything regarding Italian issues, You will forgive me if on these issues I am not able to give you answers," said the Prime Minister at the end of the EU summit in Brussels.

"I am satisfied with the results of this European Council in which I brought the positions to which I was clearly obliged by the parliamentary resolution and the position that we brought to Parliament yesterday, particularly on two issues that were important to us. The first,' the Prime Minister recalled, 'was to guarantee the necessary support to Ukraine for the next two years, but to do so with a sustainable solution in legal and financial terms. And I am glad that common sense prevailed, that we managed to guarantee the resources that are needed but to do so with a solution and a solid basis on a legal and financial level'. "The issue of the assets remains in the conclusions," he added. "The most important decision on the issue of the assets we already took a few days ago when we immobilised the assets by guaranteeing that they will not be returned. In the conclusions it is said that the European Union, and following what is the legislation, the rule of law also reserves the right to consider the use of these assets especially to repay the loan it will have to make. But this is work that still has to go on,' Meloni concluded

The summit had been prepared in such a way that, while the heads of state and government of the 27 were discussing the issues currently considered less central, the negotiations on the use of the assets between the European Commission and Belgium would go on in an attempt to find a sticking point on the big issue of guarantees. At the dinner, however, a fact began to emerge: the Russian asset track would lead nowhere. Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever had shown no signs of relenting. The perplexities of countries like Italy, Bulgaria, Malta and the Czech Republic remained intact. Viktor Orban and Robert Fico, meanwhile, did not stop working their flanks to blow up the solution that would have unleashed Moscow's ita. At that point, the pressing by Merz and von der Leyen stopped.

On the table of the 27, Plan B gained strength, a 90 billion loan financed on the capital market with the guarantee of the Qfp, i.e. the EU multiannual budget. However, such an agreement needed unanimity. And that is where the second twist took place: Prague, Bratislava and Budapest agreed to vote for the agreement, provided they had the possibility of an opt-out, i.e. not to participate in the loan for Kiev. Late at night, the 27 came together and it took less than an hour to reach an agreement. "If you know how to do your job, and talk to people, you can come to an agreement. I prepared myself, I talked to many people, even if you don't give away the secrets of the trade,' De Wever remarked, winking.

Frozen Russian assets will remain frozen until Russia has paid reparations to Ukraine. And, if it fails to do so, the EU says it is ready to use those same assets to repay the loan, in accordance with international law. 'I am happy that we have managed to secure the resources that are needed, but to do so with a solution that has a solid legal and financial basis,' Meloni explained at the end of the summit. Her face was visibly tired. But few on the eve of the summit would have bet on such a night in Brussels.