EU allocates first tranche of EUR1.5 bln to Ukraine from frozen Russian assets
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EU is allocating the first payment to support Ukraine for EUR1.5 billion received from frozen Russian assets, according to the European Commission.
Revenues received by EU operators and central securities depositories (CSDs) from frozen Russian sovereign assets were transferred to Euroclear by the European Commission as the first tranche on July 23.
"The money will now be channelled through the European Peace Facility and to the Ukraine Facility to support Ukraine's military capabilities as well as to support the country's reconstruction," the statement says.
The freezing of the Russian Central Bank's assets was the result of EU sanctions against Russia in response to its aggressive war against Ukraine. The revenues earned by EU operators do not belong to Russia and are kept in central depositories. Now, the EU has started to send these funds to Ukraine.
Background
Responding to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the European Union and its member states adopted several sets of sanctions against Russia. As part of these sanctions, the assets of the Central Bank of Russia located within EU states were frozen.
The ban on transactions related to the assets and reserves of the Central Bank of Russia and related organizations has led to an extraordinary accumulation of cash and deposits from the redemption of financial instruments on the balance sheets of central depositories, which generates large income.
Earlier, Ukraine's Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said that Ukraine would receive the first tranche of proceeds from Russia's frozen assets of EUR1.4-1.5 billion in early August 2024.
