Russia reveals retaliation for Western seizure of its assets
Russia will launch retaliatory measures which mirror the West’s expropriation of the country’s sovereign assets, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov has said.
In an interview with Rossiya-1 TV on Wednesday, Siluanov said that Russia will use income from the frozen assets of Western investors. The measures will be taken in response to the implementation of unfriendly actions by Western countries, he added.
“We are doing exactly the same. If Western countries have decided to use our assets and income from our assets, the Russian side will also implement appropriate actions,” the finance minister stated.
“Therefore, we have also frozen the resources of Western investors, Western financial market participants and companies. The income from these assets will also be used,” Siluanov elaborated.
The US and its allies have frozen an estimated $300 billion in assets belonging to the Russian central bank since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022. The bulk of the funds, around €197 billion ($207 billion), are being held at the Brussels-based clearinghouse Euroclear.
Euroclear has estimated that these Russian assets generated €5.15 billion ($5.4 billion) in interest in the first three quarters of this fiscal year.
Last month, the US announced a decision to use the proceeds from Russia’s assets to finance a multibillion-dollar loan to Kiev. The G7 states in October finalized a massive $50 billion loan to Ukraine, which will be backed by profits accrued on Russian assets currently immobilized in the West.
Russia has repeatedly warned that seizing its sovereign funds would amount to “theft” and would violate international law and undermine the global financial system. The Kremlin said earlier that the government is going to launch legal prosecution of those involved in stealing its assets.
The International Monetary Fund has also repeatedly warned that any decisions regarding the seizure of frozen Russian assets should be backed with “sufficient legal support.”
Siluanov earlier warned that global players are closely following the story and are drawing their own conclusions.
While the finance minister did not elaborate on the amount of Western assets currently held in Russia, previous calculations by RIA Novosti put the figure at roughly equal the size of the Russian funds frozen abroad. The news agency reported that total foreign direct investments in the Russian economy by the EU, G7, Australia, and Switzerland amounted to $288 billion as of the end of 2022.
