G7 not to unfreeze Russian assets until it pays compensation to Ukraine
Archival photo: G7 is deciding the fate of Russian assets (Getty Images)
Group of Seven members do not plan to unfreeze the assets of the Russian Federation until the aggressor state independently compensates Ukraine for the damages caused by the war, reports Bloomberg.
The finance ministers of the G7 countries plan to sign a communiqué on Saturday morning and lay the groundwork for using the income from frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine.
"We are discussing potential schemes to bring forward the extraordinary revenues stemming from immobilized Russian sovereign assets to the benefit of Ukraine," the draft communiqué states.
Ministers perceive progress on the Russian assets issue
At the same time, the text states that according to the relevant legal systems, Russia's sovereign assets in national jurisdictions will remain frozen until Russia pays for the damage it has caused to Ukraine.
The ministers are set to discuss Ukraine's issue on Saturday. Meanwhile, Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland acknowledged progress in the discussions about the fate of Russian assets and added that the G7 has not yet achieved its goal. Still, she is very optimistic that this will be achieved.
Utilization of Russian assets
Western countries froze Russian assets after the invasion of Ukraine began, amounting to about $300 billion. However, they do not yet plan to confiscate them for the benefit of Ukraine.
Earlier, Reuters reported that at the meeting of the G7 financial leaders in Italy, an attempt would be made to find a common ground regarding the future of the Russian assets.
