Europe faces a defining moment in its security strategy. As U.S. support for Ukraine grows increasingly conditional, the EU must find new ways to finance defence and reconstruction without overburdening national budgets or violating legal constraints.
EPIC’s latest report, Collateral for Victory, proposes a bold financial mechanism: leveraging €200 billion in frozen Russian assets as collateral to create a €1 trillion European Defence and Reconstruction Fund. Instead of outright confiscation—fraught with legal and diplomatic risks—this approach would use these assets to issue European Defence and Reconstruction Bonds, unlocking immediate liquidity while keeping the funds technically frozen.
✅ Ensures Russia bears financial responsibility for its aggression
✅ Mobilizes large-scale defence funding without relying on national budgets
✅ Accelerates military support for Ukraine and strengthens EU defence
✅ Avoids legal pitfalls by using collateral instead of direct expropriation
This innovative strategy mirrors past financial engineering successes, such as the NextGenerationEU fund and the Dawes Plan, creating a self-sustaining funding model that could transform Europe’s security landscape.
