U.S. senators urge Trump to seize Russia’s $300B assets for Ukraine
A bipartisan group of U.S. senators, representing both the Republican and Democratic parties, has called on President Donald Trump’s administration to seize all of Russia’s frozen assets, estimated at over $300 billion, and use them to support Ukraine.
This information was reported by Reuters, which obtained a copy of the letter sent to the U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on March 21, according to Deutsche Welle.
So far, Washington has only used the income generated by the frozen assets to support Kyiv. In the letter, the senators ask whether the administration believes these assets could be used as leverage in negotiations with Moscow to end the war, and if it is prepared to approve their military use.
This initiative is backed by Republicans Todd Young and Lindsey Graham, as well as Democrats Richard Blumenthal and Tim Kaine. According to Reuters, this marks a rare stance where senior Republican figures publicly call for a tougher approach to Russia.
The European Union has ruled out confiscating Russia’s frozen sovereign assets, valued at more than 200 billion euros. According to the conclusions of the EU summit on March 20, reviewed by Deutsche Welle, these assets must remain frozen until Russia halts its military aggression against Ukraine and compensates for the damage caused by the war.
Several EU member states have opposed the confiscation of more than 200 billion euros in Russian sovereign assets. They justified their position based on European legislation, the risks such a precedent could pose to Europe’s competitiveness in the financial services sector, the need to support Ukraine from the interest generated by these funds, and the fact that this sum acts as a "bargaining chip" in peace negotiations, providing leverage over Russia.
Following Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the U.S. and its allies imposed a ban on financial operations with Russia’s Central Bank and Ministry of Finance. As a result, Russia's state assets, totaling an estimated $300 to $350 billion, have been frozen, according to Reuters.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
