On March 5, Brussels EU leaders gathered for a key defense summit, they faced growing public and political pressure to seize over €200 billion in frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine’s war effort and strengthen European security.
Over half a million EU citizens voiced their support for confiscating Russian state-owned assets to help defend and rebuild Ukraine. In a powerful demonstration, the global advocacy group Avaaz, together with Ukrainian activists and supporters, unfurled a 500m² Ukrainian flag just meters away from where EU leaders and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy were holding critical discussions.
Citizens across Europe are scared – and we want leaders who are willing to take action to keep us and our fellow Ukrainians safe. France and Germany need to get off the fence, stop the political games and help unite Europe before it’s too late. We know that Europe cannot defend Ukraine while leaving Putin’s war chest intact – those billions are Ukraine’s last lifeline. Russia started this war and it should be Russian billions that pay for it.
Pascal Vollenweider, Avaaz Campaign Director
Top international experts confirm that seizing frozen Russian state assets is entirely legal and has precedents in international law. Similar actions were taken after Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990, the Iran hostage crisis in 1979, and when the U.S. transferred frozen Cuban assets to compensate victims of a 1996 attack. Putin’s victims deserve the same justice.
In the face of Russia’s blatant violation of its international legal obligations to respect the sovereignty of Ukraine, international law permits other States to respond with “counter- measures”, and that includes using frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine”
Philippe Sands, Professor of the Public Understanding of Law
Despite this, France and Germany remain the main obstacles to asset confiscation, citing concerns over financial stability and potential withdrawal of foreign capital from the Eurozone. However, experts argue these fears are exaggerated. The European Central Bank (ECB) could stabilize the euro, Norway’s sovereign wealth fund could intervene, and if autocrats withdraw investments, European citizens can step up and buy bonds themselves.
Another concern is corporate retaliation from companies such as TotalEnergies and Metro AG, which continue to operate in Russia.
Concerns for corporate interests must be secondary to the defence of the people of Ukraine and Europe. These private businesses made a conscious choice to continue operating and making profits in Russia despite its illegal invasion of Ukraine. They accepted the risks of doing so and forfeited any claims to national solidarity when they decided to put their bottom line before international law and the worst threat against European security since WWII.
Pascal Vollenweider, Avaaz Campaign Director
Support for asset confiscation is growing. Canada has committed to sending $5 billion in aid to Ukraine using seized Russian funds. The UK has taken steps to strengthen its stance on asset confiscation. The European Parliament has passed a resolution laying the groundwork for a legal mechanism to seize Russian state-owned assets within the EU.
With pressure mounting, EU leaders must act. The demand is clear: Seize Russia’s billions and use them to help Ukraine rebuild. The aggressor must pay.