US Proposes Unfreezing Russian Assets to Revive Ukraine Peace Talks

The U.S. has proposed releasing some Russian sovereign assets frozen in Europe and placing them under Washington’s oversight as part of an effort to restart negotiations over the war in Ukraine.

European representatives rejected the initiative, according to four people briefed on discussions reported by the Financial Times.

The proposal has unsettled Kyiv and European capitals over Washington’s approach to securing an agreement with Moscow.

President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner presented the idea during meetings in Miami last week.

Officials from Ukraine, France, Germany, the U.K., the EU and NATO took part.

Several arrangements were discussed, including transferring funds into a newly established special-purpose financial vehicle overseen by Washington.

Europe Rejects Loss of Control

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz publicly opposed the initiative on Thursday as he arrived for a summit of EU leaders in Brussels.

“These are assets that are frozen in Europe, and they should stay frozen in Europe. This is our matter, and we decide on it,” he said.

European officials at the Miami meeting rejected both relinquishing authority over the money and allowing any of it to return to Russia, the people briefed on the discussions said.

“They were told that this was just simply not going to happen,” one person said.

A U.S. official said the assets had been discussed as part of a comprehensive peace settlement.

Questions about the arrangements for releasing the funds and their eventual use remained unresolved.

Ukrainian negotiators said earlier meetings with Washington had also addressed the issue.

Billions Frozen in Europe

Western countries immobilized roughly €260 billion in Russian state assets following the full-scale invasion in 2022. The EU holds the bulk of those funds.

Interest generated by the frozen holdings has backed a €45 billion G7 loan to Ukraine. Many European governments have resisted using the principal because of legal concerns.

EU leaders agreed late last year that the assets should finance Ukraine’s reconstruction if Moscow does not pay reparations.

Releasing them would require agreement from all 27 member states, a prospect considered unlikely.

Kyiv and some European governments have advocated deploying the frozen funds to support Ukraine.

Washington Revisits Earlier Proposal

The Trump administration’s unsuccessful 28-point peace initiative contained a similar asset proposal a year ago.

The U.S. official said Washington asked Kyiv to outline how it would allocate funds from any source.

Ukraine was also asked to work with the World Bank on anti-corruption measures and financial accountability.

Russia, meanwhile, continues to demand access to the immobilized holdings.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday that Moscow would “make every possible effort to achieve the return of stolen assets,” according to Russian state media.

He said those efforts would include litigation.