Berlin (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The German government, the EU’s largest economy, is receptive to a European Union initiative to utilise frozen Russian assets for Ukraine, Reuters reported.
As reported, the European Union plan, intended to support Ukraine amid doubts about the United States’ commitment to Kyiv under President Donald Trump, is expected to be a major topic at an informal EU summit in Copenhagen next week.
“The German government is open to the debate on the EU Commission’s new proposals,”
The government source said, without confirming the exact particulars of the plan.
How would the EU transfer russian funds to Ukraine?
The EU intends to transfer up to 200 billion euros of Russian funds stored in a Belgian depository to Ukraine and replace it with EU-backed bonds, according to Politico. So far, the EU has only collected interest from the Russian assets that were frozen following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The Commission aims to prevent allegations of unlawfully seizing Russian state property by replacing frozen cash with IOUs, an approach a diplomat called “legally creative.”
Supporters of the Commission’s plan argue it would be legally secure because it does not technically expropriate Russian assets directly. However, some, including Euroclear, the firm holding the cash, worry that the plan could expose them to legal risks.
What legal challenges has Berlin raised in the past?
Germany, Ukraine’s second-largest military supporter, has historically raised legal issues regarding complete asset seizures. However, Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil suggested last week that Berlin is re-evaluating its position on this legally sensitive matter.
How much Russian state money is frozen in Europe?
According to reports, the overall amount of Russian assets that have been frozen in the EU is about €210 billion, with much of it held in Euroclear (the Belgian securities depository with about €185 billion in frozen assets). These assets (which are cash, shares, and sovereign bonds) are mostly the property of the Russian Central Bank.
It is estimated that frozen state assets belonging to Russia across all Western jurisdictions amount to about $300 billion (around €275 billion), with Europe having the largest percentage of this total. There are also private Russian assets frozen around the world that amount to roughly $58 billion, which is far less than the amount of state assets frozen by the EU and allies.
