Military of Ukraine to receive billions from Russia’s frozen assets

The EU plans to allocate $3.25 billion from frozen Russian assets due to sanctions to support Ukraine and its military.

“Russia has to give money for the damage caused by the war,” said Jan Lipavsky, Czech Republic’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, as he revealed the exact amount on X.

The European Council agreed to give money to Ukraine on Tuesday. This comes about two months after deciding to use the money from assets worth hundreds of billions of dollars that were frozen when Russia started a large war against Ukraine in February 2022.

In reaction to the move, Kirill Logvinov, who leads Russia’s constant mission to the EU, claimed that the EU Council had “officially raised stealing to the level of tools in its foreign policy. “

The comment was from an interview translated by Tass, a Russian news agency. Logvinov said that the outcome of the EU’s decision will be hard to predict and could affect the eurozone, the economies of the EU countries, and the investments in the region.

The war in Ukraine has caused a very serious conflict and a big problem with helping people. The country also needs a lot of money and time to rebuild everything.

The Biden administration wants the EU and its 27 member countries to help Ukraine by taking money from Russia’s frozen assets, potentially by taking the money for themselves.

Those who disagree with the plan to transfer Russian assets to Ukraine say it might not be allowed by law and could have bad effects on the euro. If the EU takes the assets, Russia might take European stuff in return.

The EU wants to help Ukraine without getting involved in Russia’s business. They are avoiding the difficult questions and giving support to Kyiv instead.

“Sweden’s Anders Ahnlid said that Ukraine could use the 2 to 4 billion euros of extra money each year for rebuilding, without breaking any rules. “

Since the war started, the EU, Group of Seven and other US allies have frozen $282 billion in assets from the Central Bank of Russia. Most of the money, about two thirds, is held in the EU’s territory, the EU Council reported in February.

The EU will use 90% of the money from unexpected profits to help Ukraine with its military.

Some of the money will be used to help Ukraine’s defense industry and rebuild things. The EU said they will collect money twice a year from accounts in Russia.

Last month, President Biden approved the REPO for Ukrainians Act. This law lets the US give Russian money to Ukraine to help with rebuilding. It’s part of a big bill that spends money on keeping the country safe. A group of senators from both political parties is asking Biden to use his power to put the new law into effect before the G7 meeting in June.