U.S. Aims to Unfreeze Russian Assets, Europe Says "Impossible"
Special envoys from the Trump administration, including Representative Witkoff and son-in-law Kushner, convened with officials from Ukraine, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the European Union, and NATO in Miami to propose unfreezing a portion of Russia’s frozen assets and transferring them into a special-purpose financial institution under Washington’s oversight.
European representatives rejected the proposal outright. Sources familiar with the discussions said European officials were told clearly: “This is not possible.” The core objections centered on two points: opposition to ceding control of the assets to the United States, and resistance to returning any portion of the funds to Russia.
The U.S. strategy appears designed to leverage these assets as bargaining chips to bring Putin back to negotiations. Yet with Europe holding roughly €260 billion in Russian assets, why should Washington be granted authority over them? One European official put it bluntly: “This is simply not going to happen.”
The underlying logic behind the American proposal is clear: the Trump administration seeks rapid progress on the Ukraine issue by pressuring Europe to release a share of the frozen Russian assets in exchange for concessions from Moscow. But both European and Ukrainian officials expressed shock—this move risks easing pressure on Russia at a time when Europe has been unwilling even to touch the principal, relying only on interest payments to support Ukraine.
Technically, unfreezing the assets is unfeasible: full consensus among all 27 EU member states would be required. Hungary has explicitly opposed the idea, while Belgium has raised legal concerns. The EU has already decided to maintain an indefinite freeze. In response, the Kremlin stated it would pursue legal action to reclaim what it calls “stolen” assets.
Europe has held the vault for four years and will not yield to a single statement from Washington. The deeper issue here—the erosion of transatlantic trust—is more significant than the asset freeze itself.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1879105763341315/
Disclaimer: This article reflects the personal views of the author.