site.btaUPDATED EC Doesn’t Rule Out Possibility of Confiscating Frozen Russian Assets if Legally Possible

There have been calls to confiscate frozen Russian assets in the EU, and this issue is being discussed with international partners. The European Commission remains open to such a decision, provided there is a legal basis for it, said EU Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen during a debate in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, focused on Russia's assets affected by EU sanctions due to the war in Ukraine.

According to the EU Commissioner, a total of EUR 210 billion have been frozen in the EU under these sanctions, with part of the assets belonging to the Russian state and the rest being private property. Hansen noted that annual interest on these assets generates approximately EUR 3 billion in revenue.

In May last year, EU member states decided that this revenue would be directed toward Ukraine. The freeze will remain in place until Russia provides compensation. The accumulated interest is not owed to the Russian Central Bank, even if the freeze is lifted, the Commissioner clarified. He also noted that earlier this year, the European Commission transferred the first EUR 3 billion generated from these interest revenues to Kyiv. 

In the subsequent statements, only one political group in the European Parliament - the Europe of Sovereign Nations Group - did not support the possibility of confiscating frozen Russian assets in the EU. According to the far-right political group, confiscating frozen Russian assets would be "adding fuel to the fire" and called for the EU’s participation in peace talks instead.

The European People’s Party (EPP) emphasized that Russia’s war has caused damage not only to Ukraine but also to the EU and supported the full confiscation of Russian state-owned assets affected by sanctions. The Socialists and Democrats argued that there are no significant legal obstacles to confiscating the assets and insisted on securing reparations from Russia proportional to the damages inflicted.

The Patriots for Europe group called for the complete confiscation of frozen Russian assets in the EU. The European Conservatives and Reformists stated that the EU is obligated to seize these funds. The Renew Europe group demanded reparations from Russia and advocated for a pan-European approach to directly transfer the confiscated Russian assets to Ukraine.

The Greens stressed that Russia is responsible for committing war crimes and must pay for the damage it has caused. They added that the EU has a moral responsibility to confiscate the assets in support of Ukraine. The Left expressed the view that handing over Russian assets to Ukraine would strengthen Kyiv’s position in peace negotiations.