Active discussion on ways to transfer frozen Russian assets to Ukraine continues - Ministry of Justice
The countries where most of the frozen Russian assets are located are discussing effective ways and mechanisms for their transfer to Ukraine.
This was stated by Deputy Minister of Justice of Ukraine Iryna Mudra, Censor.NET reports citing Ukrinform.
"Currently, there is an active discussion among the countries where the vast majority of Russian frozen assets are located about effective ways to transfer Russian assets to Ukraine and mechanisms for doing so. It has been repeatedly emphasized at the official level that the sovereign assets of the Russian Federation will remain frozen until the latter compensates for all the damage caused by the aggression against our country. At the moment, the Netherlands and other partner countries are focusing on the transfer of windfall returns generated by the frozen assets of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation to Ukraine," she said.
Mudra explained that following the European Summit on March 21-22, 2024, the leaders of the EU member states officially emphasized the importance of introducing a legal mechanism for transferring to Ukraine in the near future the profits generated by the frozen assets of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, the lion's share of which is located in the Belgian securities depository Euroclear (191 billion euros).
"At the same time, the issue of full confiscation of frozen Russian assets in favor of Ukraine is being actively discussed by the states where the frozen Russian assets are located, applying countermeasures against the latter. In terms of specific difficulties, the main obstacle to the confiscation and transfer of frozen Russian assets to Ukraine is the political factor. Given the specifics of decision-making at the level of the EU Council and the European Council through the need to reach a consensus among all EU member states, the issue of using Russian sovereign assets is facing difficulties," the Deputy Minister added.
When asked what mechanisms are needed for this, Mudra noted that "first of all, we are talking about the implementation of national legislation of the states where the frozen Russian assets are located, or the conclusion of an international agreement on this issue."
According to Mudra, two bills have been registered in the United States that provide for the confiscation of sovereign Russian assets. The Canadian Parliament is considering amendments to the existing law on special economic measures. The UK House of Commons is also considering a bill on confiscation.
