BRUSSELS — The European Commission is offering a legal fix to allay one of Belgium’s deepest fears of a nightmare

scenario that could unfold if €140 billion of Russian assets frozen in Brussels are used as a loan to Ukraine.

The Commission wants the 27 EU member countries to agree to lend the immobilized billions to Kyiv at a European Council

summit this month. Belgium is resisting, however, over its concerns that it will be on the hook if the cash has to go

back to Russia.

Five diplomats and EU officials said a legal framework was now being drawn up to avoid that from happening. A full

proposal on the loan is expected on Wednesday.

Belgium's ultimate fear is that the €140 billion could be lent to Ukraine and then a single pro-Russian EU country, such

as Hungary or Slovakia, could veto the renewal of the EU sanctions regime against Moscow. That would mean Belgium

immediately having to send the missing billions back to Russia.

The Commission's fix to keep Belgium happy is to avoid one EU country being able to overturn sanctions. Currently

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has the power to do exactly that, as sanctions require unanimity and must be

renewed every six months.

The Commission now sees a way round this. It wants to resort to a clause in Article 122 of the EU treaty, which allows

governments to decide “in a spirit of solidarity between Member States, upon the measures appropriate to the economic

situation.”

The Commission wants to interpret this to mean that the financial stakes are so high in this case that a qualified

majority of nations will be able to approve a sanctions roll-over, robbing Hungary of a potential veto. One of the

diplomats said this strategy was a way "to secure Belgium's backing."

The EU’s lawyers agree the fluid language of Article 122 can justify overhauling the unanimity requirements because of a

reversal of the sanctions would wreak havoc on the European economy. It could also be used to extend the vote on the

sanctions renewals from the current six-month timeframe to three years, said the diplomats briefed on the discussions.

Time is now of the essence because failure to reach an agreement will leave Ukraine on a shoestring budget to fight

Russian forces before its coffers run dry in April. The alternative is for EU taxpayers to shoulder the cost of

Ukraine's war, while Moscow's sanctioned billions remain untouched.