The US wanted to reach out to Russia. Europe said no
Quick Look
- According to the Financial Times, representatives of the US, Ukraine, France, Germany, Great Britain, the EU and NATO discussed in Miami a proposal to unfreeze some Russian assets and transfer them to US supervision.
- The West froze about €260 billion of Russian assets after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, and the proceeds financed a €45 billion G7 loan to Ukraine.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
After Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Western countries froze approximately EUR 260 billion of Russian state assets, mainly in the EU. The proceeds were used to finance a G7 loan to Ukraine in the amount of EUR 45 billion. EU leaders announced that the assets themselves would be used to rebuild Ukraine if Russia did not pay war reparations.
The Financial Times, citing four sources, reported that the idea of unfreezing some Russian assets and transferring them to the supervision of the United States was presented last week during talks in Miami with the participation of representatives of the US, Ukraine, France, Germany, Great Britain, the EU and NATO.
The proposal was put forward by US President Donald Trump's special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
The British newspaper reported that the Americans proposed several ways to unfreeze the assets, including transferring them to a special fund supervised by Washington. According to a US official quoted on condition of anonymity, the mechanisms for releasing the funds and their allocation remain part of the talks on a comprehensive peace agreement.
However, European participants in the meeting opposed both the transfer of control over US assets and the return of any part of them to Russia, the Financial Times reported.
The West has frozen EUR 260 billion of Russian state assets
After Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Western countries froze approximately EUR 260 billion of Russian state assets, mainly in the EU. The proceeds were used to finance a G7 loan to Ukraine in the amount of EUR 45 billion.
EU leaders announced that the assets themselves would be used to rebuild Ukraine if Russia did not pay war reparations. Unfreezing them would require the unanimous consent of all Community countries.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday that Russia would take all possible legal actions to recover its assets.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
Talks on the fate of frozen Russian assets will continue in the coming weeks
Likely · Within weeks
Russia will take legal action in international courts to recover frozen assets
Very likely · Within months
Open Questions
- What specific asset control mechanisms does the United States propose?
- Does the US proposal include full unfreezing of assets or only part of them?
- What are the exact conditions for the possible return of any part of Russia's assets?
- What legal actions does Russia plan to take to recover its assets?
