Tino Chrupalla, co-chair of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, has denounced German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s position on the issue of the use of Russia’s immobilized assets, most held in Belgium, for a “repatriations loan” to Ukraine, triggering a heated debate in parliament, TASS reported Dec. 18.
“This [the conflict in Ukraine] has never been our war. Instead, [the EU leaders] are now looking at expropriating Russian government property and transferring it to Ukraine. This statement alone adds fuel to the fire,” he said.
“It is much easier to spend others’ money than one’s own,” he noted. He added that expropriating Russian assets contradicts the interests of German citizens, and that his party will never support it.
On Dec. 17, German Chancellor Merz demanded that the European Union ultimately confiscate immobilized Russian assets. “Continuing Europe’s financial support for Ukraine is not enough,” Mr. BlackRock told the Bundestag. In his words, the confiscation of Russian immobilized reserves, and then transferring them to Ukraine “will make it possible to finance the Ukrainian army for at least two years,” TASS reported.
