The issue of frozen assets of the Russian Federation became a key topic during the informal meeting of the European Union foreign ministers in the “Gymnich” format, which took place in Copenhagen. The EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Kaja Kallas, emphasized on August 30 that the return of these assets to Russia cannot occur without fulfilling its obligations regarding reparations to Ukraine.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Discussions on frozen Russian assets in the EU
According to Kallas, the meeting in Copenhagen was informal, so no decisions were expected. However, among the main agenda items was Russia’s war against Ukraine and the future of the frozen Russian assets. Diplomats plan to discuss in depth the potential risks and ways to utilize these funds in the future.
“There are pros and cons. There are some delicate issues regarding this, but we really need to have a reasoned discussion about it – what are the risks? Because we need to have an exit strategy. We cannot imagine that in the event of a ceasefire or peace agreement, these assets would be returned to Russia if they do not pay their reparations,” the diplomat stated.
Additional funds to support Ukraine
Profits from frozen Russian assets are already being partially used to assist Ukraine. In particular, in August, our country received 1 billion euros under the ERA instrument. The Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) mechanism, initiated by the G7 countries, involves providing Ukraine with approximately 50 billion dollars in loans secured by revenues from frozen sovereign assets of the Russian Federation. These funds are directed towards supporting the state budget, military needs, and infrastructure recovery.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on participants of the Ukraine Recovery Conference in July to use not only the interest from these assets but also the assets themselves to finance the recovery of our country.