The U.S. Congressional Budget Office released a surprising forecast: there is a 50% chance that the U.S. will seize half of its frozen Russian sovereign assets, worth $2.5 billion - totaling $5 billion in Russian sovereign assets frozen by the U.S. since 2022. However, even if the U.S. Congress approves the bill to seize $2.5 billion in Russian sovereign assets, there remains a major issue: will the outgoing President Trump, who is reluctant to initiate a new round of asset seizures, agree?
Of the $280 billion in Russian sovereign assets frozen globally, the U.S. holds a small proportion, mainly frozen by Europe. However, what is most noteworthy is whether the U.S. will seize the frozen Russian sovereign assets, as the U.S. is the leader of the West. Only when the U.S. takes the initiative to seize the assets will Europe follow.
Russia's response is predictably firm and unambiguous: any attempt to seize Russian sovereign assets will be regarded as theft and will be met with retaliation from Russia.
In fact, the escalation of the Ukraine-Russia conflict is not really on the battlefield in Ukraine, but rather is reflected in the increasingly fierce confrontation between the West and Russia. Trump still wants to call or meet with Putin, not wanting to go too far, but the U.S. Democrats, anti-Russian forces, and Europe have been pressuring Trump. If Trump falls behind in the struggle against the domestic anti-Russian forces in the U.S. and Europe, then Trump's strategy towards Russia will completely fall apart, and his foreign policy strategy and personal image will suffer heavy blows. In such a case, even if the Democrats cannot control one or both of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate in the 2022 midterm elections, Trump will find it difficult to make progress.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1848845557921804/
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