Belgium freezes €10B in Russian assets

By Ata Ufuk Seker

ANKARA (AA) – Belgium has frozen €10 billion ($10.9 billion) in Russian assets over the past two weeks, according to local media reports.

The Belgian Finance Ministry has blocked account access for Russian individuals and companies hit with sanctions by the European Union over Moscow’s war on Ukraine.

In the past two weeks, €2.7 billion in bank accounts have been frozen and transactions worth €7.3 billion blocked, the reports said.

Russian assets in Belgium are primarily in the energy, fertilizer, tourism, steel and diamonds sectors.

EU sanctions against Russia and Belarus over the Ukraine war apply to a total of 862 individuals and 53 organizations.

*Writing by Ovunc Kutlu in Ankara​​​​​​​