Europe considers seizing frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine

Support is growing in the West for the seizure of hundreds of billions of dollars worth of Russian assets that were frozen after Moscow launched a full-scale offensive in Ukraine. European allies fear that incoming U.S. President Donald Trump could cut military aid to Kiev, and some say that frozen Russian assets could fill the gap if that happens.

Western countries froze about $300 billion of Russian state assets after Moscow launched a large-scale offensive in Ukraine in 2022. Most of the frozen assets are held in Europe.

There are about $22 billion of such assets in Britain. British lawmakers last week voted in favor of a non-binding motion to give the money to Kiev.

Several MPs cited uncertainty over future military aid to Ukraine during the term of United States President-elect Donald Trump.

"We know he thinks differently about Ukraine, about European security and about Russia. So if we want to shift aid to Ukraine, especially given the possibility of reduced support from the United States, we need to move quickly to seize this $300 billion in frozen assets and send them to Ukraine," says Mike Martin, a Liberal Democrat MP in Britain.

"Certainly now is the chance for this British government to take the lead in trying to use these assets to help Ukraine, which has very great needs," says Conservative MP Iain Duncan Smith.

A reduction in US aid to Kiev could force Europe to make a decision on frozen assets, says Alexander Kolyandr of the Center for European Policy Analysis.

"We would be afraid of abandoning Ukraine in the face of Putin's war machine. So I think if the issue were to reach this point, then the decision would be made to give Ukraine this money," he says.

Ukraine could pledge to use the money to buy American weapons to secure Mr. Trump's support, adds expert Alexander Kolyandr.

“This would fit well with the America First idea. This would help Ukraine get weapons and would be seen as a victory for Mr. Trump in the eyes of his supporters.”

But he says the European Central Bank and some European governments have expressed reservations about seizing frozen Russian assets.

"They fear that seizing Russian assets and sending them to Ukraine would damage confidence in the euro as a reserve currency and foreign countries would be too afraid to invest their sovereign assets in stocks, treasury bonds and the European currency," he says.

Moscow says the seizure of its assets would be illegal and has vowed to retaliate. But analysts say most Western firms have already divested their assets in Russia.