EU transfers €1.5bn of frozen Russian assets to Ukraine for the first time
26 July 2024 13:42
On 26 July, the European Union transferred €1.5bn of frozen Russian assets to Ukraine. This was announced by the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports
“The EU supports Ukraine. Today we are transferring €1.5 billion in proceeds from frozen Russian assets,” she wrote.
She noted that the money will be used for the defence and reconstruction of Ukraine.
“There is no better symbol or use of the Kremlin’s money than to make Ukraine and the whole of Europe a safer place to live,” the European Commission President added.
In May, the EU member states agreed to use the proceeds of frozen Russian assets for the benefit of Ukraine.
Brussels estimates that up to €3 billion will be available this year.
Last week, the G7 leaders agreed to allocate $50 billion for Ukraine through the use of frozen Russian assets.
Russian money abroad
Around €260bn of the Central Bank of Russia’s assets have been frozen in the form of securities and cash in the jurisdictions of the G7, the EU and Australia, with more than two-thirds of them frozen in the EU.
belgium controls €190bn of assets in euros, the US controls assets worth between $40bn and $60bn, and the UK controls around £25bn.
As for the funds of individuals, the Atlantic Council, a US think tank, claimed at the beginning of the full-scale war that Russians had about $1 trillion of dark money abroad. According to a 2020 report, a quarter of this amount is controlled by Putin and his oligarchs.
READ MORE: The first money from frozen Russian assets: two ways to receive it
