BRUSSELS, December 10. /TASS/. European Council President Antonio Costa said the European Union may extend the summit scheduled for December 18-19 to reach an agreement on financing Ukraine by seizing frozen Russian assets, Politico reported.
The news outlet notes that such an extension would violate the European Council’s informal "golden rule," which holds that a good summit should last no more than one day. On the eve of the meeting, Costa told reporters that the upcoming summit could last up to three days, until "a positive conclusion" is reached.
Summit extensions have become relatively common, as European leaders often struggle to reach consensus on complex issues. For example, the decision to appoint Ursula von der Leyen as President of the European Commission took three days of talks, from June 30 to July 2.
At the upcoming summit, the European Commission hopes to persuade EU member states to expropriate €210 billion in Russian assets, €185 billion of which are frozen at Euroclear in Belgium. This country, however, is resisting the move, insisting on legally binding guarantees from all EU countries to compensate Belgium for any financial losses resulting from Russia’s retaliatory measures.
Costa earlier stated that the summit will also review the progress of the EU’s program to strengthen military preparedness as the bloc braces for potential confrontation with Russia and Belarus by 2030. European leaders will additionally examine the EU’s new seven-year budget framework for 2028-2034 and discuss the bloc’s enlargement process as well as its relations with Middle Eastern countries.