Russia's friends are asked to leave € 200 billion frozen assets of the Russian Federation - Politico

China, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia are afraid that the confiscation of Russian assets will create a precedent, and they themselves can become the next after Russia. The publication notes that these three countries can act on behalf of Putin and do not want the EU to assist Ukraine on the battlefield. The countries that sympathize with Russia are urging the EU to abandon the complete confiscation of frozen assets of the Russian Federation.

This position was privately made by representatives of China, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. They fear that the confiscation of Russian assets will create a precedent. Politico writes about it. The media called these three states "friends of Russia". They insist that EU countries continue to withstand pressure from the United States and the United Kingdom on confiscation of more than 200 billion euros of Russian state assets that are frozen after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

"These countries (China, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia - Ed. ) Are very skeptical of this idea," one of the officials shared anonymously with journalists. The concern is that "it will create a precedent" - that is, these countries will be afraid that they can become the next. Despite their fears, it is not necessary to exclude the fact that they can act on behalf of Putin and do not want the EU to assist Ukraine on the battlefield, the newspaper notes.

"I admit that the Russians could ask their friends to raise this noise," said a high -ranking diplomat from a non -EU country. There is also suspicion that Moscow will push its allies to attack Western assets in their countries. The issues of Russian assets will be discussed at the meeting of G7 finance ministers in May. Financial risks are spoken within the EU.

The German government and the European Central Bank believe that confiscation can undermine investors' confidence in the EU financial system. At the same time, European officials believe that if the confiscation is still, the Russian Federation will be able to challenge it in the courts. We will remind, on March 15, German Chancellor Olaf Scholtz stated that the survey from frozen assets of the Russian Federation in Europe will be directed for the purchase of shells for Ukraine.