Britain Set to Utilize Immobilized Russian Funds to Fund the Ukrainian War Effort

The British government is prepared to move forward with employing the full worth of frozen Russia's assets to support the Ukrainian war effort, Leader Sir Keir Starmer has announced.

In a joint statement, the leaders of the UK, France, and the Federal Republic of Germany stated that this unified step would increase strain on Russia's leader Vladimir Putin and persuade the Russian Federation to engage in negotiations.

They further noted that the decision would be implemented in tight collaboration with the United States.

British penalties have blocked in excess of £25bn of Russia's resources since Russia initiated its comprehensive attack against the Ukrainian nation in 2022. However, until now, resources provided to Ukraine using Russia's assets had only been drawn from profits and interest earned on them.

Sir Keir told President Volodymyr Zelensky that the UK, France, and the Federal Republic of Germany were in agreement in their aim to advance efforts toward utilizing the complete amount of the immobilized Russia's state assets to halt hostilities.

He noted that further measures over the next period would apply more pressure on Russia.

This statement comes after European representatives convened in Copenhagen recently to discuss employing immobilized Russian holdings for a €140bn loan to the Ukrainian nation.

Recently, President Donald Trump called on international partners to seize or employ seized Russia's holdings, according to media sources.

The value of frozen Russia's holdings in the Europe is estimated to be almost €211bn.

Leader Zelensky urges UK's Sir Keir Starmer to take part in the PURL program

Russia carried out widespread missile and drone strikes throughout the Ukrainian territory on Friday, causing power cuts in significant regions of Ukraine's capital, the city, and several other zones.

Several persons were killed and at least 20 people were hurt in the strike, the Ukrainian government said.

In a message on an online platform after the incident, Zelensky commented that the premeditated assault focused on non-military and power facilities.

"The necessity is not empty words but decisive action - from the US, the European Union, and the Group of Seven - in supplying anti-aircraft weapons and implementing sanctions," he emphasized.

"Every sanction decision weakens Moscow's military apparatus," Zelensky declared, in a different message.

In the same period, Zelensky stated to reporters he would press Sir Keir to enter the Purl programme, under which Nato countries purchase arms from the United States to donate to the Ukrainian forces.

While praising the United Kingdom's consistent assistance for Ukraine, he noted it should send a clear signal that it would participate in the initiative, as well as apply more sanctions on Russia.

Large-Scale Assaults Cause Outages in the Capital and Nationwide

• Conflict in Ukraine
• France
• Germany
• Russian Federation
• Ukrainian Nation