Russia has warned the European Union (EU) that it will face serious consequences if it proceeds with plans to seize or repurpose frozen Russian assets, stating that such actions would trigger a strong retaliatory response.
Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said the country has a sufficient arsenal of tools to respond appropriately to any possible confiscation of its assets, warning that the European Union will “feel the response” from Moscow.
“Brussels and other European capitals, which are particularly zealous in supporting the idea of de facto confiscation of Russian money, can be sure that Russia has a sufficient arsenal of capabilities for a proper political and economic response. The EU will feel our response,” he said.
Grushko warned that confiscating Russia’s assets would have severe consequences for the European Union’s financial stability and global reputation.
He further cautioned that such actions could erode trust in Europe’s financial system and trigger a massive capital outflow.
According to Grushko, the consequences for the initiators and participants of such expropriation measures are guaranteed.
“Public refusal to respect the property rights of the Russian Federation will lead to a collapse of trust in the European financial sector, which has been formed for decades, and a large-scale outflow of capital. This is understood all over the world,” he added.
“We would not recommend that EU member states be led by irresponsible European officials and inveterate Russophobes, who in fact offer to try in case Russians will not do anything in response, and the rest of the world will not draw conclusions about the reliability of the EU’s ‘financial harbor.’”.
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EU Mulls $165 Billion Loan to Ukraine Using Frozen Russian Assets as Kremlin Cries
European officials have increasingly turned their attention to Russia’s frozen assets as U.S. aid for Ukraine declines under US President Donald Trump.
The EU’s executive arm has advanced a proposal to issue an interest-free “reparations loan” of €140 billion (about $165 billion) to Ukraine, designed to utilize the Russian assets without formally seizing them.
The loan would be repaid only if Russia compensates Ukraine for war-related damages. Britain is considering a similar plan.
“We need a more structural solution for military support,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday. “This is why I have put forward the idea of a reparations loan that is based on the immobilized Russian assets.”
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Kremlin had earlier warned that it would seek the prosecution of individuals and countries involved in the “theft” of frozen Russian sovereign assets in Europe, as European leaders met to discuss a proposal to lend $165 billion to Ukraine using the frozen funds.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov made no distinction between outright seizing the Russian assets and using them to extend a loan to Ukraine, as top European leaders have proposed. “We are talking about theft,” Peskov said during a call with reporters.
His comments came a day after President Vladimir Putin signed a decree to accelerate the redistribution of assets within Russia. Moscow has already taken control of several Western companies’ operations as part of a broader reallocation of wealth amid the war.
Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov stated last year that Russia had frozen Western assets of equal value to the held by the West, indicating that Moscow would respond symmetrically.
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