Global political paralysis: why Russia’s frozen assets have still not been confiscated

In the past week, leading European Union officials have repeatedly referred to Russia’s frozen assets, and not without reason.

The EU, together with the G7 countries, remains the custodian of hundreds of billions of dollars in frozen Russian assets. Yet, despite Russia’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine, not a single dollar from these reserves has been confiscated.

Meanwhile, Ukraine has been resisting the aggressor for more than three years, deepening its budget deficit and incurring colossal losses. Our country’s growing financial needs are largely covered by international partners’ budgetary funds, but the dynamics of global political support are constantly shifting.

Against this backdrop, one obvious question arises:

why does the West not use the most convenient source of financing for Ukraine’s defence — Russia’s frozen funds?

Unfortunately, there is still no satisfactory answer. What cannot be denied, however, are the numbers. The amount of aid to Ukraine already provided from taxpayers’ pockets is soon to catch up with the value of Russian assets that those very same partners are so reluctant to confiscate.

Frozen billions

After Russia’s invasion in February 2022, the G7 countries froze tens of billions of dollars in Russian sovereign assets. While no official consolidated figure has been disclosed, approximate estimates suggest the following:

•     United States — $38 billion
•     United Kingdom — $26 billion
•     Japan — $58 billion
•     Germany — $55 billion
•     France — $71 billion
•     Canada — $16 billion
•     Italy — undisclosed.

Altogether, some $264 billion in Russian sovereign assets remain frozen across G7 jurisdictions. Beyond this, the largest share of frozen Russian assets — around $227 billion (€195 billion) — is held in the Belgian securities depository and bank Euroclear.

In total, this amounts to roughly $500 billion. And even that is not the full picture.

The goose that lays the golden eggs

Although the largest “gold reserve” of Russian assets at Euroclear is frozen, it continues to generate income through securities market investments. According to EU legislation and investment agreements, this money no longer belongs to Russia, it is the property of the financial group itself.

Euroclear’s official data shows income earned from frozen Russian assets as follows:

•     2022 — €821 million
•     2023 — €4.4 billion
•     2024 — €6.9 billion
•     First half of 2025 — €2.7 billion

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