Das ist das Titelseite von The Guardian (Europa).. Kurzfassung: Russland führt eine aktive Einschüchterungskampagne gegen wichtige belgische Akteure in der Geschichte der Vermögensbeschlagnahme.
Das Beängstigende an dieser Geschichte ist nicht so sehr die russische Einschüchterung selbst, sondern die Tatsache, dass prominente Mitglieder unserer Regierung offen argumentieren, dass diese Einschüchterungskampagne die belgische Politik beeinflussen sollte. Ein paar aktuelle Zitate:
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Bart: Moskau hat uns mitgeteilt, dass im Falle einer Beschlagnahme seiner Vermögenswerte Belgien und ich wir würden das Gefühl haben, dass es für die Ewigkeit vergeht
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Bouchez: Und das dritte Risiko, das nicht vernachlässigt werden sollte, ist natürlich ein Sicherheitsrisiko. Wissen Sie, als die Drohnen über Belgien flogen, geschah das nicht aus Ablenkung, sondern um Druck auf Belgien auszuüben.
Das ist wirklich schlimm. Unabhängig davon, was Sie über die Einziehung von Vermögenswerten denken, überschreitet diese Art von Argument eine tiefe rote Linie. Dies macht unsere Demokratie für endlose und unbegrenzte Erpressung zugänglich, wann immer wir darüber nachdenken, was einem ausländischen Mafiastaat nicht gefällt: Wir wissen, dass Russland so vorgeht, und es ist die Aufgabe unserer Politiker, dafür zu sorgen, dass uns das nicht passiert.
Bart, Georges-Louis, um Himmels willen, macht ein Paar zusammen und hört auf, der Welt zu verkünden, dass die belgische Demokratie durch Einschüchterung zur Unterwerfung gezwungen werden kann.
Our politicians should not be using Russian intimidation as a policy argument, ever.
byu/Mr_Two_Shoes inbelgium
Von Mr_Two_Shoes
8 Kommentare
I hope you know this already happened before only then it was called rexism and opposition only kicked in once the country was occupied.
Narcos set up shop in Antwerp, now they own Antwerp and move to Brussels too. Thank god Bart was there ? was he ?
Our politicians are afraid of coke dealers. They must be pissing their pants when it comes to Putin.
I understand where you are coming from but BDW already explained in full detail why he’s against the European Commission’s idea and it wasn’t because of the intimidation. See the video below.
https://youtu.be/0_tagkPH4XE?si=TDRmon9w2wfZcoF8
He only mentioned the Russian intimidation later on to create more sense of urgency / geopolitical pressure for the media and trying to unify everyone within Belgium. Or at least, almost everyone with common sense.
Every political party in Belgium is on the same side because it’s an economic suicide, and nobody wants to help us. The ECB has made it very clear how stupid this idea would be. And that has little to do with Russia but with our judicial system that simply doesn’t allow a government to randomly take someone’s money without repercussions.
It’s indeed not in the general interest to be fear-mongering so openly and playing into Russia’s hands. My guess is that BDW is making a politically calculated move – for our country’s interests and also his own interests.
That said, Russian risk is not non-existent and the extent of that risk should be discussed behind closed doors.
This unfortunately lines up with De Wever’s recent surprising remarks on Ukraine:
>« Qui croit vraiment que la Russie va perdre en Ukraine ? C’est une fable, une illusion totale. Ce n’est même pas souhaitable qu’elle perde et que l’instabilité s’installe dans un pays qui a des armes nucléaires », [a déclaré Bart De Wever lundi](https://www.rtl.be/actu/belgique/politique/qui-croit-vraiment-que-la-russie-va-perdre-en-ukraine-les-propos-controverses-de/2025-12-05/article/772594).
In practical terms, this further weakens De Wever’s position on the debate of the frozen funds. As always, I support his principal argument that the other member states cannot just leave the legal risks to Belgium alone, but his recent pro-Russian stance (for lack of a better word) on the end of the war *and* this new revelation that implies he faces direct pressure from the Kremlin, it becomes more and more difficult to support his position on the principle alone.
>Bart, Georges-Louis, for fuck’s sake grow a pair between you, and stop broadcasting to the world that Belgian democracy can be intimidated into compliance.
Yes, even if Belgium remains as stubborn as possible on the Russian funds, this is absolutely essential. I sincerely hope that our government takes a stronger stance against Russia in the future.
No one is above intimidation and geopolitics is about as tough as it gets, especially with the Russians involved who have honed their skills in such endeavors for decades during the Cold War. Geopolitics has always been about black-mailing, manipulations and half truths. I understand your sentiment and in an ideal world you’re right, but in the end it’s how the game is played.
However, I don’t think the position Belgium is taking in this discussion is influenced by Russia. We’re just trying to avoid being the ones holding the short end of the stick when the dust settles.
The decision was made because this it is bad for our country and we might become liable for the money and any damages to Moscow under international law.
De Wever has already said Belgium is willing to help, if the other nations put in ink their backing of Belgium and also shouldering liabilities. This stance has not changed.
This is just a bunch of nonsense reporting that has taken comments out of context. Russian threats are taken seriously, but this has NOT changed the stance that has been there from day 1. The demands have remained the same. Everyone shoulders the liabilities and puts it down in ink.
Mobsters have been trying to intimidate De Wever for over a decade because he has always been going hard against drugs in Antwerp, and he has never backed down. He’s not a career politician like De Croo who only thinks about his career, he is someone who believes in his convictions.