EU Approves Transfer of Profits from Frozen Assets of Aggressor Russia to Aid Ukraine

The EU Council of Ministers has decided to use the profits from the assets of the Russian central bank frozen in the EU to help Ukraine. This was announced on the X network by Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky.

"Within the EU, today we have decided to transfer funds from the frozen assets of the Russian Central Bank to Ukraine. This year alone, it could be up to 74 billion croons. 90% of the funds will be used for military support. Russia must pay for the damage caused by its aggressive war," the Czech official wrote. 

Earlier, on 8 May, EU permanent representatives agreed to use the proceeds of frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine's recovery and military defence against Russia's military aggression. The final decision had to be approved at the level of the EU Council of Ministers, which took place today, 21 May.

Since the start of Russia's full-scale military invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, democratic countries around the world have blocked Russian financial assets exceeding €300 billion. According to some estimates, the majority of these assets are held in financial institutions in the European Union, particularly in Belgium.  

In total, Euroclear currently holds €192 billion of the Russian central bank's assets. The EU is looking for legal mechanisms for the further handling of these blocked resources, as well as the interest accrued on them, which has reached EUR 5 billion over the past two years.