EU launches ad hoc group on use of Russia’s frozen assets
The group will also be engaged in the search for Russian state assets and a general assessment of their value (Photo:Olivier Hoslet / Pool / Reuters)
The European Union has established an ad hoc working group to develop plans for the use of frozen and immobilized Russian assets to support rebuilding Ukraine, the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the EU tweeted on Feb. 15.
“EU ambassadors today approved the establishment of an ad hoc working party on the use of frozen and immobilized Russian assets to support Ukraine’s reconstruction,” the agency tweeted.
As noted, the purpose of the working group is to address the use of frozen and immobilized Russian assets in line with EU and international law. It includes preparatory work on the legal, financial, economic, and political analysis of the feasibility of such use in close coordination with international partners.
According to the Reuters news agency, the ad hoc group will be headed by Anders Ahnlid, the head of Sweden’s National Board of Trade, a government agency.
Among the key assets will be Russian central bank funds expected to amount to tens of billions of dollars, Ahnlid said.
The Bloomberg news agency reported on Jan. 26 that European Union member states have been told the bloc has the legal authority to temporarily leverage at least EUR 33.8 billion ($36.8 billion) of Russian central bank assets to help pay for the reconstruction of Ukraine.
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