EU approves plan to use frozen Russian assets
The European Union has formally approved the use of proceeds from frozen assets of the Russian Central Bank to help strengthen Ukraine's defenses, the European Council announced on May 21.
This decision could result in more than 3 billion euros being sent to Ukraine's military this year.
The news comes as Ukraine is calling on its Western allies to speed up the delivery of military aid to its troops facing a Russian offensive in the east.
The decision was made public in Brussels by the Belgian Government, which currently presides over the presidency of the 27-member bloc.
"The European Council has confirmed its agreement to use proceeds from Russia's frozen assets to help the Ukrainian military to defend itself and for reconstruction, in the context of Russian aggression," the EU said in a post on X, which formerly known as Twitter.
About 210 billion euros in assets belonging to Russia's Central Bank have been frozen by the EU since Moscow launched its aggression against Ukraine in February 2022. This sum is estimated to generate interest of about 3 billion euros a year.
About 90 percent of the proceeds go into the European Relief Fund, which is used by most EU states to get reimbursements for military equipment they give to Ukraine.
