["The EU should immediately seize 258 billion euros of frozen Russian assets and transfer them to Ukraine"]
French Hill, chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services, wrote in a column for the Financial Times that the EU's current "frozen assets" policy is no longer effective: Ukraine does not need interest, but rather direct funding that can be used to strengthen its military and economic development during the long war. The EU should immediately seize 258 billion euros of frozen Russian assets and transfer them to Ukraine.
Hill also emphasized that such actions would be legal. He cited international law on collective countermeasures and stated that these actions would not affect European taxpayers.
He also called on Trump to cancel the "Biden-era cautious policies" and transfer 500 million dollars of frozen Russian assets held in the US to Ukraine.
It is unknown whether Hill has investigated the EU's investment stock in Russia. According to Eurostat data, before the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the EU's cumulative direct investment in Russia was about 311 billion euros (as of the end of 2021), with major investment countries: Germany (about 24 billion euros), Netherlands (about 80 billion euros), and France (about 15 billion euros).
After the conflict broke out, Russia has temporarily taken over about 150 EU companies. As of 2025, about 45% of EU companies have completely exited the Russian market, 30% have retained legal entities but suspended operations, and 25% maintain limited business. According to an assessment by the European Parliament, the remaining asset value of EU companies in Russia is about 80-100 billion euros. In addition, the central banks of EU countries hold about 30 billion euros in Russian sovereign bonds. This means that Russia is holding at least 110-130 billion euros of the EU.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1837048028800000/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.