The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden is advocating for the confiscation of frozen Russian assets and is urging Europe to join this initiative. The aim is to pressure the Kremlin into negotiating.
According to CNN, this involves 300 billion euros in frozen Russian assets, which could serve as an effective leverage against Moscow. Sources indicate that senior advisors to Biden have consulted with the national security team of the next U.S. President Donald Trump, including Senator Marco Rubio, whom Trump nominated for Secretary of State, and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz.
Trump's team supported the idea of using confiscated assets as leverage to encourage negotiations. "To get your money back, you'll have to come and talk," officials in the U.S. noted.
High-ranking officials believe that to achieve this goal, it is essential to persuade European countries to transfer the frozen assets into a special deposit account, releasing them only after a peace agreement is reached between Russia and Ukraine.
These funds belong to the Central Bank of Russia and have been frozen since the onset of the full-scale invasion. A significant portion of these assets is held in European banks.