WASHINGTON – At the Munich Security Conference, U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), chairman and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), co-leads of the bipartisan delegation to the Conference, urged the Trump Administration and the Group of Seven (G7) allies to unlock the full value of roughly $300 billion in Russian assets frozen in the West, and repurpose them for transfer to Ukraine.
“Congress passed the bipartisan REPO Act to support Ukraine using frozen Russian sovereign assets parked in American banks. Europe then dedicated the interest on hundreds of billions in frozen Russian assets stowed on the continent to support a $50 billion loan to support Ukraine’s fight," the lawmakers wrote.
“After speaking with President Zelenskyy, it’s clear that America and our transatlantic allies must unlock more support for Ukraine, through the actual seizure of the underlying frozen assets or through, for instance, using those assets as collateral for another, larger loan for Ukraine. Vladimir Putin must pay for his brutal invasion, and Russia’s own assets are an appropriate way to give brave Ukraine the support it needs to fend off his murderous aggression,” the lawmakers concluded.
Senators Risch and Whitehouse’s bipartisan REPO for Ukrainians Act passed into law in April 2024. The law allows frozen sovereign assets of the Russian Federation to be used, including through seizure, for rebuilding Ukraine. In October, the Biden administration and G7 allies announced a collective $50 billion loan to Ukraine, to be repaid with funds generated by Russia’s frozen sovereign assets. The United States contributed $20 billion of the $50 billion loan from Russia’s proceeds, which was disbursed in December at no cost to taxpayers.
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