Ukraine Closing In On Putin's Billions Stashed Abroad

Source: Newsweek

Published Mar 06, 2024 at 10:46 AM EST


Britain would be prepared to loan Ukraine all frozen Russian central bank assets in the U.K., Foreign Secretary David Cameron has said. Speaking to peers on Tuesday night, Cameron said that the decision would be made on the basis that Moscow will be forced to pay reparations to Kyiv after Russian President Vladimir Putin's war in the neighboring country comes to an end, British newspaper The Guardian reported.

His remarks come after The New York Times in December reported that the Biden administration could be close to seizing more than $300 billion in Russian central bank assets stashed in Western nations and handing them to Ukraine to aid its war effort.

Citing unidentified senior American and European officials, the publication reported that the White House was quietly signaling new support for confiscating the immobilized Russian sovereign assets. The Biden administration, in coordination with G7 governments, is exploring whether it can use its existing authorities or if it should seek congressional action to use the funds, the Times reported.

"There is an opportunity to use something like a syndicated loan or a bond that effectively uses the frozen Russian assets as a surety to give that money to the Ukrainians knowing that we will recoup it when reparations are paid by Russia," said Cameron.

Read more: https://www.newsweek.com/ukraine-russia-frozen-assets-sanctions-1876554