EU member states have given the final green light to use profits from Russia's frozen assets in the EU to arm Ukraine.
As the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU announced on Tuesday, “the Council confirmed the agreement to use windfall profits from Russia's frozen assets to support Ukraine's military self-defense and reconstruction in the context of Russian aggression”.
On 8 May the member states had reached an “agreement in principle” and on Tuesday 21/05 the final decision was taken by the EU General Affairs Council.
From the profits of the frozen assets of Russia approximately 2.5 to 3 billion euros can be drawn annually.
Of this 90% will be used for military support of Ukraine and 10% for the reconstruction of the country.
p>According to estimates of the European Commission, within the summer the EU is expected to disburse from the extraordinary profits of the frozen Russian funds in the EU, the first billion euros to buy weapons for Ukraine.
It is estimated that the Russia's central bank's frozen assets in the EU, since the start of the war in Ukraine, amount to around €210 billion, most of which is in Belgium and managed by the international fund management agency Euroclear.
< p>source: CNN Greece
