Thursday Briefing: G7 Leaders Prepare to Debate Frozen Russian Assets

For two years, Western allies have debated how to deal with $300 billion in frozen Russian assets. The G7 leaders, who will meet beginning today in Italy, seem on the brink of announcing a compromise.

European leaders feared that seizing the assets would violate international law. So the Biden administration devised a plan to use interest generated by them to back a loan that could be delivered immediately to Ukraine.

The loan could be as large as $50 billion and would be repaid over time with the profits being generated from Russia’s money. Finance ministers from the G7 have been working out the details, and a U.S. spokesman said he anticipated “unanimity” on efforts toward it at the summit.

The leaders are also slated to tackle the question of how to stop China from bolstering Russia by selling it “dual use” microelectronics and other gear to rebuild its military. The Biden administration announced yesterday that it would add sanctions aimed at stopping China from helping the Kremlin in its invasion of Ukraine.

In related news, Ukraine plans to sell around 20 state-owned companies to fund the war and help its economy.