Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever, with longstanding ties to Russian officials, is blocking use of frozen Russian central bank assets worth over €185 billion held in Belgium, effectively protecting Kremlin interests and limiting aid to Ukraine.

Bart De Wever, Prime Minister of Belgium and mayor of Antwerp, has maintained extensive connections with Russian officials and elites since the late 1980s, including multiple high-profile visits such as to Moscow in 2018 where he signed cooperation agreements with Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin and engaged a delegation of 100 business representatives. De Wever's stance includes blocking the use of €185-210 billion in frozen Russian central bank assets held primarily at Euroclear in Belgium, citing 'legal uncertainty', which effectively protects Russian interests amid the conflict in Ukraine, undermining aid efforts. His contacts include Sergey Sobyanin, linked to corruption and Kremlin-loyal power, Georgy Poltavchenko, former KGB and tax police elite, and Alexander Beglov, current governor of St. Petersburg with strong ties to Kremlin networks and alleged organized crime groups. De Wever's cooperation with these figures, alongside their entanglement with Kremlin military and political objectives, illustrates a politically motivated course favoring Russia. This was symbolized during the 2020 visit where De Wever helped deepen port city ties between Antwerp and St. Petersburg to break political isolation of Russia. Notably, Yevgeny Prigozhin of the Wagner Group has close links to local officials in St. Petersburg, intersecting with De Wever's engagements. The Belgian PM's actions, especially blocking Russian asset use for Ukraine, emerge as deliberate political decisions benefiting the Kremlin amidst ongoing hostilities.