BRUSSELS — The European Union will transfer 1.5 billion euros (S$2.2 billion) in proceeds from frozen Russian assets to Ukraine, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday (July 26).

Western countries blocked around US$300 billion (S$400 billion) worth of sovereign Russian assets after Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022.

Last month the Group of Seven major democracies and the EU agreed to use interest earned from the frozen Russian assets to support a US$50 billion loan for Ukraine, aiding its defence against Moscow's invasion. Russia has vowed legal action.

"Today we transfer 1.5 billion euros in proceeds from immobilised Russian assets to the defence and reconstruction of Ukraine. There is no better symbol or use for the Kremlin's money than to make Ukraine and all of Europe a safer place to live," von der Leyen said on social media platform X.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal thanked the EU.

Related

---