A bipartisan group of U.S. senators is urging the Trump administration to facilitate the transfer of over $300 billion in seized Russian assets to aid Ukraine, rather than merely using the interest from these assets to support Kyiv.
The senators have inquired how the administration views leveraging all available financial tools to intensify pressure on Russia to cease hostilities. They specifically asked whether U.S. and EU-held assets could serve as leverage in negotiations with Russia and requested details on how such a strategy could be implemented.
The letter, signed by Republicans Todd Young and Lindsey Graham, and Democrats Richard Blumenthal and Tim Kaine, marks a rare instance of senior Republicans advocating for a firmer stance against Moscow. Pro-Ukraine lawmakers in Congress have remained relatively silent since Trump shifted U.S. policy closer to Russia following the latter's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The correspondence coincides with discussions between U.S. and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia regarding a maritime ceasefire deal in the Black Sea, paving the way for broader peace negotiations to conclude the ongoing war in Ukraine.
For years, members of Congress have advocated utilizing seized Russian assets to finance Ukraine's reconstruction, hoping to alleviate the financial burden on American taxpayers while exerting pressure on Moscow for a peace agreement.
The senators asked if the administration plans to devise a strategy aimed at encouraging the EU, G7, and other allies to leverage sovereign Russian assets and whether it would support Ukraine's use of Russian sovereign assets under U.S. control to acquire defense equipment.
Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the U.S. and its allies imposed restrictions on transactions with Russia’s central bank and finance ministry, blocking an estimated $300 billion to $350 billion in sovereign Russian assets. Most of these assets are European, U.S., and British government bonds held in a European securities depository, with about $7 billion contained in U.S. financial institutions.
European leaders have expressed a desire to utilize these assets for Ukraine's reconstruction but have yet to reach a consensus that avoids setting a problematic international precedent, with several options under review.
While European and U.S. officials have agreed to use profits from interest on the frozen Russian assets to support loans to Ukraine, they have not sanctioned the use of the assets themselves. Lawmakers acknowledged the U.S. government's reluctance to seize these assets outright and sought clarification on the administration's position regarding the matter.
Russia has denounced plans to utilize the funds for Ukraine, characterizing them as robbery. However, sources suggest that Moscow may agree to use assets frozen in Europe for reconstruction, conditioned on part of the funds being allocated to the one-fifth of Ukraine currently under Russian control.
In 2024, the U.S. Congress passed the "Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act," which was signed into law by former President Biden in April. This legislation granted the U.S. president the authority to transfer seized Russian assets to Ukraine, marking a significant precedent, as Washington has never before seized central bank assets from a country with which it is not at war.