Times: The United States Does Not Support EU Plans to Seize Russian Assets

The British newspaper "The Times" reported, citing informed sources, that the Trump administration does not support the European Union's plans to seize frozen Russian sovereign assets and warns them that what they confiscate will be returned later.

According to the newspaper, representatives of the Trump administration warn that if the assets are seized, the European Union and Britain will have to "return the money" later.

The newspaper quoted a source saying, "The Europeans will have to return the money they seize later," adding that the issue of Russian assets is one of the main points in Trump's peace plan.

"The Times" pointed to Washington's concerns that "stealing Russian sovereign assets will prolong the conflict and deprive the West of tools to influence Moscow."

This comes after Bloomberg agency reported at the end of November that the clause allocating about $100 billion of frozen Russian assets to a fund for Ukraine's reconstruction was removed from the latest version of the U.S. peace plan. Initial proposals stated that the United States would receive 50% of the profits from these assets, while unused frozen funds would be directed to a Russian-American investment fund.

On December 12, the Council of the European Union decided to ban Russian sovereign assets "indefinitely." The European Commission seeks approval from member states at the summit on December 18-19 for a decision to seize 210 billion euros of Russian assets, most of which (185 billion euros) are frozen on the Belgian "Euroclear" platform.

However, the initiative faces increasing opposition. On December 15, the platform "Euractiv" reported that the number of opposing countries within the EU rose to seven: Belgium, Hungary, Slovakia, Italy, Bulgaria, Malta, and the Czech Republic. The platform warned that any attempt to push the decision could cause a "serious split" within the Union.

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin described any potential seizure as theft. Russian Justice Minister Konstantin Chuychenko presented options to the country's leadership for responding to this possible step.