According to Finance Minister Christian Lindner, such an idea is being discussed among the G7 and EU member states, and certain proposals have been received. At the same time, in the case of possible confiscation of assets of the Russian elite, it is necessary to strictly follow the law
Christian Lindner
German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said that he was “politically open” to the idea of confiscating foreign assets of the Russian Central Bank. He said this in an interview with four European newspapers, including Handelsblatt.
“I am politically open to the idea of confiscation of foreign assets of the Central Bank of Russia. This issue is already being discussed among the members of the G7 and the EU, the proposals have already been announced,” he explained.
According to Lindner, in the case of private assets, it is necessary to carefully study the legislation. “We must respect the rule of law, even when dealing with Russian oligarchs,” the minister said.
He also said that the EU is ready to decide on further sanctions against Russia. “We intend to isolate Russia politically, financially and economically,” Lindner stressed.At the same time, we are seeing serious economic consequences, especially for low-income countries, due to rising interest rates and rising world prices for agricultural products. We will have to work together to stabilize the global economy.”
Western countries, including the European Union, the United States and the United Kingdom, decided to block the Central Bank’s international reserves at the end of February. The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, clarified that the measure would freeze the regulator’s transactions and deprive it of the ability to use assets.
The head of the Ministry of Finance of Russia Anton Siluanov claimed that about half of the gold and foreign exchange reserves were frozen: about $300 billion out of $640 billion.
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In March, the Central Bank took retaliatory measures. In particular, he banned banks from transferring money from non-residents of countries that have announced sanctions against Russia abroad. The list includes 43 countries. In addition, at the end of March, the regulator took additional measures to limit the flow of funds. “Restrictions were imposed on the movement of capital, a ban on the sale of securitiessecurities by foreign investors and a ban on their withdrawal of funds from the Russian financial system. In addition, payments on corporate debt of Russian companies and public debt to debt holders from countries that support sanctions against Russia will take place only with the permission of the government commission, the Central Bank reported.
Japan has already thought about the possible confiscation of the Central Bank’s reserves. However, the authorities came to the conclusion that it would be impossible to arrest or freeze assets, since there are no relevant provisions in the country’s legislation.
Ukraine has stated that it claims the frozen reserves of the Central Bank and, together with Western partners, is working on a mechanism for confiscating $415 billion of reserves. “In fact, this amount is almost enough to cover the direct one-time losses of Ukraine. We expect that in the near future, together with the governmentsWe will find a legal mechanism for the partner countries, with the help of which this money will go to the further restoration of the Ukrainian economy,” said Denis Kudin, the first deputy head of the Ministry of Economy of the country.
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