BRUSSELS: On Wednesday, the European Commission put up a plan to use earnings from investing Russian money that was subject to sanctions to make up for harm caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Officials in the European Union, the United States, and other Western nations have long discussed whether Ukraine may profit from frozen Russian assets, such as the $300 billion in reserves held by the Russian central bank and the $20 billion owned by Russians on the blacklist.
Moscow claims that seizing its money or the money of its citizens is theft.
According to Ursula von der Leyen, head of the EU executive, “Russia must… pay financially for the destruction it created.”
“It is projected that Ukraine has sustained 600 billion euros in losses. Ukraine must receive damages reimbursement and cost-sharing for the nation’s reconstruction from Russia and its billionaires.
Officials from the European Commission stated that creating a fund to manage and invest the central bank’s liquid assets and using the profits to support Ukraine would be one short-term solution for Western countries.
When the sanctions were lifted and Ukraine was guaranteed to be compensated for its losses, the assets would be returned to their owners.
One official stated, “It’s not easy, therefore it will need significant backing from the world community, but we feel it is achievable.
Private persons’ and corporations’ frozen assets can typically only be legally seized in cases where there has been a criminal conviction.
The Commission has suggested that sanctions violations could be considered crimes that are subject to seizure.
In addition, Von der Leyen stated that the Commission was advocating the creation of a specialized court with support from the UN “to investigate and prosecute Russia’s crime of aggression.”
Moscow disputes that its invasion, which it refers to as a “special military operation,” qualifies as aggression and a war crime in accordance with international law.
Source: Reuters
