Frozen Russian assets only viable source of funding EU must direct to Ukraine – lawyer

This was stated by Yulia Ziskina, senior lawyer of the Ukrainian-American organization ‘Together for Ukraine’, in a comment to an Ukrinform correspondent in The Hague.

"The decision is obvious, but it requires political will, as well as a greater sense of urgency. So far, we have not seen this urgency, but I hope that with the changing political landscape, Europe will wake up, because this war is happening in Europe's backyard. The victims are in the European countries, and we must do everything possible to ensure that Ukraine could defend itself and win this war. These assets could play a fundamental role in that," emphasized Ziskina.

According to her, frozen Russian assets are the only viable source of funding.

"In fact, the only viable source of funding is the frozen Russian assets. Currently, there are USD 300 billion in frozen Russian assets around the world. A significant portion of them is in Europe, but they are scattered globally," Ziskina said.

She also noted that Russia needs to compensate Ukraine for USD 486 billion in damages, which includes only losses to civilian infrastructure and property.

"Russia has to compensate for damages totaling USD 486 billion. This figure only covers infrastructure and property losses, not considering the rights of victims and reparations. I believe there are already over 10,000 claims in the Damage Register," the international lawyer pointed out.

Ziskina stressed: "Russia is the aggressor. Russia is the one that needs to be held accountable, and it is the party that should pay for the damage and horrors it has inflicted on the lives of its victims."

As reported by Ukrinform, former Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas stated that the EU should use about USD 300 billion in frozen Russian assets directly to finance the recovery of war-affected Ukraine.