Bessent explained on Fox News that the assets would be used as “part of the negotiation with Russia” over the situation in Ukraine.
“This is a card in the big negotiation process. We will see if some or all of this money can be used to rebuild Ukraine,” Bessent said.
After the conflict broke out in 2022, the West froze more than $300 billion in Russian financial reserves, most of which are in the EU, while the US has frozen only about $5 billion in Russian assets. Moscow has repeatedly called this an act of “theft.”
While Ukraine has urged the seizure of all assets, many European leaders and experts have warned that such a move could violate international law, undermine investor confidence and cause financial instability. Europe has now opted to divert profits and interest from Russian assets, estimated at more than $3 billion a year, to support Kiev.
Last year, the US Congress passed a law allowing the government to seize Russian state assets, but the White House has not done so because of legal concerns. Instead, Washington and the G7 agreed to a $50 billion loan to Ukraine, secured by future interest on frozen Russian assets.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov insisted that Russia “will never give up ownership of these assets” and warned that the West would face “serious legal consequences” if it tried to seize them outright.