Zelensky says Russia may try to recover frozen assets through partners; assets remain under European control
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told journalists that Ukraine has information Russia will try, through various partners, to reclaim part of its frozen sovereign assets. He said those assets are currently fully under European control and are safe. His comments come after a Financial Times report that US negotiators proposed transferring part of the frozen funds to a US-controlled mechanism to advance peace talks — a proposal European participants at Miami talks opposed, and that the Belgian and German leaders have publicly rejected.
Key points
- Zelensky said Ukraine has information Russia will try to recover part of its frozen assets through various partners.
- Zelensky said the frozen Russian assets are fully under European control and therefore safe.
- The FT reported US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner proposed to European partners to unfreeze part of Russia's sovereign assets and transfer them to a special mechanism under US control to advance peace talks.
- The proposal was presented the previous week at talks in Miami with representatives from Ukraine, the US, Germany, France, the UK, the EU, and NATO; European participants opposed it.
- German Chancellor Friedrich Merz opposed transferring the assets to US control, saying decisions must be made by Europeans.
- Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever categorically opposes even discussing the use of frozen Central Bank of Russia assets.
- An earlier EU summit produced no decisions on Ukraine financing or Russian assets due to a lack of agreement.
Why it matters
Russia's frozen sovereign assets sit at the intersection of Ukraine funding and pressure on Moscow. A reported US plan to move some of those funds into a Washington-controlled mechanism has been pushed back by European participants, the German chancellor, and the Belgian prime minister. Zelensky's framing — that European control keeps the assets safe — signals where Ukraine lands in that transatlantic dispute. The standoff raises the bar for any near-term deal to unlock or redirect the funds to support Ukraine.
What happened
President Volodymyr Zelensky told journalists in an online chat that Ukraine has information Russia will try, through various partners, to recover part of its frozen sovereign assets. He stressed that those assets are currently fully under European control and are therefore safe. Zelensky said he had discussed the issue in detail with Belgium and thanked the Belgian prime minister and his team, as well as EU leaders.
The Financial Times reported that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner had proposed to European partners to unfreeze part of Russia's sovereign assets and place them in a special financial mechanism under US control, with the aim of advancing peace talks on ending Russia's war against Ukraine. According to the FT, the proposal was presented the previous week at talks in Miami attended by representatives of Ukraine, the US, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the EU, and NATO, and European participants opposed it. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz rejected any transfer to US control, saying decisions on the funds must be made by Europeans. Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever went further, publicly opposing even discussion of using frozen assets of the Central Bank of Russia. An earlier EU summit produced no decisions on Ukraine financing or Russian assets because members could not agree.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian outlets led with Zelensky's own comments, presenting the dispute through his assurance that European control keeps the assets safe. They framed the question as one of where control of the frozen funds should sit, without endorsing the reported US proposal. Zelensky's thanks to the Belgian prime minister and EU leaders, and his claim that Russia is seeking to recover assets through unnamed partners, carried the European position into the coverage.
Background
Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever has publicly rejected even discussing the use of frozen Russian central bank assets. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has insisted that decisions on Russian assets frozen in Europe must be made by Europeans, not transferred to US control. An earlier EU summit failed to agree on Ukraine financing or Russian assets. The Financial Times reported that the US proposal was put to European partners at Miami talks attended by Ukraine, the US, Germany, France, the UK, the EU, and NATO, and that European participants opposed it.