G7 countries agree to allocate US$50 billion to Ukraine from Russian assets

The G7 countries' leaders have reached a consensus on providing Ukraine with approximately US£50 billion in loans, secured by profits from frozen Russian sovereign assets. Source: G7 statement; Voice of America Quote: "These loans will be serviced and repaid by future flows of extraordinary revenues stemming from the immobilisation of Russian Sovereign Assets."

Details: In a communique published during the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington, global financial leaders confirmed that "Our aim is to begin disbursing the funds by the end of the year".

The G7 leaders agreed during their annual summit in Southern Italy in June to provide loans backed by interest accrued from blocked Russian funds, though numerous technical details were left to be worked out. Russian assets worth around EUR260 billion (about US£280.62 billion), such as the Russian Central Bank's reserves, have been frozen under sanctions imposed after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The majority of these assets are held with Euroclear, a central securities depository based in Belgium, making the European Union a key player in any plan to use Russian assets. "The G7 remains steadfast in its solidarity to support Ukraine's fight for freedom, and its recovery and reconstruction...

Time is not on [Russian leader] Putin's side," the G7 statement emphasised.

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