G7 finance ministers supported plan to use Russian assets for Ukraine
As reported by Censor.NET with reference to European Pravda, this was reported by the Financial Times, which has reviewed the draft communique of the ministerial meeting.
As noted, the discussion of the ministers was based on the proposal of the United States, circulated on the eve of the meeting in the Italian city of Stresa, to issue a loan to Ukraine in the amount of almost 50 billion dollars, which will be repaid at the expense of profits from the assets of the Russian central bank in the amount of about 190 billion euros.
The ministers said they had "made progress" in working out options to "withdraw" the profits, according to the draft communique. They added that G7 leaders will be presented with options on how to build credit before the summit in June.
They also vowed to keep up pressure on China to cut industrial subsidies they say are driving Western competitors out of business, and said implementing the most significant global tax deal in more than a century was a "top priority."
Many details of the loan have yet to be agreed upon, including the amount, who will issue it, and how it will be guaranteed in the event of Ukraine's default or if profits do not materialize, people familiar with the negotiations said.
One official said Europeans were particularly concerned about "equitable risk sharing", fearing that Europe would bear the brunt of financial and legal risks and retaliatory actions from Russia, since most of the assets are on the continent.
How will the frozen assets of the Russian Federation be used for the benefit of Ukraine
As reported, according to The Guardian, the finance ministers of the "Big Seven" countries this week will discuss the possibility of revenues from the use of 270 billion euros of frozen Russian assets to provide a loan to Ukraine. The amount of the previous one will be $30-50 billion, and the income from seized Russian assets will be used to pay off or pay interest on it. This proposal is actively supported by the United States and the United Kingdom, but Germany has previously been skeptical.
At the same time, the European Union is already working on the implementation of its own scheme, which provides for the use of revenues from frozen Russian assets in EU countries to finance military aid to Ukraine. In February, the Council of the EU decided to separately account for such income, and on May 21, the EU countries agreed on a plan for using these funds.
The High Representative of the European Union for foreign policy and security policy, Josep Borrell, estimated the income from frozen Russian assets at about 3 billion euros per year, these funds are planned to be used for military and civilian support of Ukraine.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, believes that it is possible to allocate the first billion euros to Ukraine from the profits from the frozen assets of the Russian Federation as early as July 1.
At the same time, the EU authorities allowed the European depository Euroclear, which stores most of the frozen assets of the Russian central bank, to keep the profits received from their investments in 2022 and 2023 for a total amount of about 5 billion euros. Thus, these funds will not be transferred to Ukraine as part of the decision that is currently being discussed in the EU, Politico wrote.
