The European Union to Decide on Profits from Frozen Russian Assets After G7 Summit

European Union finance ministers will decide on profits from frozen Russian assets after next week's summit of the G7 industrialized nations, known as the 'G7'. These assets were frozen in Western countries following Russia's military invasion of Ukraine. Pascal Donohoe, the head of the 'Eurogroup', made these remarks during a video conference with finance ministers from EU member states on Wednesday, June 6. He, who presides over these meetings, stated that there is unwavering support to assist Ukraine and meet its financial needs to counter the Russian military invasion. In a statement following the video conference, Donohoe said that discussions among the finance ministers of these countries reflect constructive engagement with G7 partners in this regard and appreciated these efforts. He added that EU finance ministers will review G7 proposals on this matter at their upcoming meeting. Following Russia's military invasion of Ukraine, Western countries have deactivated about $300 billion of the Russian central bank's assets, generating an annual profit of between 2.5 to 3.5 billion euros. While the seizure of assets is legally risky, European governments agree that using the profits from these frozen assets is not problematic since they do not legally belong to Moscow. The European Union, which holds a significant portion of these assets, has agreed to place the annual profits in a special fund to cover the costs of weapons needed for Ukraine and the reconstruction of the country. However, within the G7, which includes the U.S., Canada, Japan, the UK, France, Germany, and Italy, Washington has sought to use the profits to repay a substantial immediate loan to Ukraine, which is in dire need, rather than disbursing it gradually over a long period. According to the G7 plan, which the EU will act upon after the G7 leaders' summit, the profits from frozen Russian assets could be used to repay loans granted to Ukraine by the U.S., G7 countries, or the EU.