'Western governments are drawing up plans to issue debt to help fund Ukraine, using Russian assets as a backstop for the repayment in a move that would force Moscow to start paying for its invasion.
Under the plans, Kyiv’s allies could raise debt to fund the war-torn country. The coalition supporting Ukraine would demand that Russia repays the debt and, if it fails to do so, would seize frozen Russian sovereign assets instead, according to officials familiar with the discussions,
The Belgian government has circulated the plans to G7 nations, several officials with knowledge of the proposals told the Financial Times. Officials from two G7 nations said that it was now a leading option to unlock the frozen funds for Ukraine.
Structuring the support in this way would allow the coalition to raise funds for Ukraine without needing to immediately resolve legal questions about other nations’ grounds for the seizure of Russian sovereign assets.
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The Biden administration has previously expressed support for a bill currently in Congress that would allow it to “to seize Russian sovereign assets for the benefit of Ukraine”.
Last year, it circulated a discussion paper among G7 members which said Ukraine’s allies could “seize Russian sovereign assets as a countermeasure to induce Russia to end its aggression”.
David Cameron, UK foreign secretary, said in December that he was confident a legal route to seize Russian state assets could be found.'
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G7 draws up plans to backstop debt-raising for Ukraine with Russian assets, February 3 2024
Context '..Europe can recapitalize its armed forces and help Ukraine win with relatively modest expenditures..'G7 Said To Be 'Moving Closer' To Seizing $300 Billion In Russian Assets For Ukraine'Putin will therefore fight on until his military is physically defeated, treating any cease-fire simply as a chance to rearm for a more decisive attack..'Defeat Putin in a long war'..destroy [Russian] equipment before it reache(s) the battlefield..'