Sanctioned Russian investors have filed €53 billion lawsuits against the EU.

Russian businessmen have initiated 28 legal proceedings in Europe over assets seized under sanctions, according to the ETJC report. They are seeking €53 billion in compensation. This amount is equal to the European aid to Kyiv from 2022.

Russian businessmen subject to EU sanctions have filed lawsuits against the European Union and its member states for a total of at least €53 billion, according to a report by the European Trade Justice Coalition (ETJC).

The coalition's publication states that 28 investment arbitration cases (including threats of asset seizure) are pending. This is almost equivalent to the entire budget of military aid provided by the EU to Ukraine since 2022. Moreover, almost half (13) of the claims were filed in 2025.

When filing complaints, Russian businessmen use the dispute resolution instrument known as ISDS (Investment-Related Suspension Documents). This mechanism allows international investors to sue governments if they believe legislative or policy changes have harmed them. Originally created to protect foreign companies from unlawful expropriation, ISDS allows for litigation outside national and European legal systems. These cases are typically decided by three arbitrators, typically business lawyers, and do not allow for appeal, according to the newspaper Le Soir.

Specifically, the Russian oil company Rosneft threatened to sue Germany over the potential loss of $7 billion in assets, including a major oil refinery. France also faced two complaints from sanctioned Russian businessmen, one of which specifically concerns the seizure of assets.

The founder of Alfa Group, Mikhail Fridman (estimated net worthFORBES , — $15.2 billion) is demanding $16 billion from the Luxembourg government to freeze its assets, which represents half the country's federal budget, according to the report. It has filed a similar lawsuit in the UK . Four Russian investors holding funds in the Euroclear depository formally notified Belgium of the legal dispute in September and October. The filing of these lawsuits coincided with debate in Europe about using frozen assets as "reparations loans" to Ukraine. Prime Minister Bart de Wever even cited ISDS as an argument to explain his reluctance to use the Russian Central Bank's assets.

At the same time, the EU is already taking targeted measures to prevent the enforcement of decisions rendered under the ISDS mechanism, notes the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD). For example, the 18th sanctions package against Russia includes provisions aimed at blocking the recognition and enforcement in the EU of decisions and court rulings issued in disputes related to measures against Russia, "which undermine the effectiveness of the sanctions."

In October, the Higher Regional Court in Frankfurt am Main opened a case to confiscate €720 million from a Russian bank account, Die Zeit reported. The case was initiated by the Federal Prosecutor's Office . The confiscation is related to a possible violation of the ban on the disposal of funds frozen after the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine.

The authorities of Belgium, where most of the frozen Russian assets are held, oppose the seizure of the funds and their provision to Ukraine as a "reparations loan." Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever warned that the European Union must prepare for lawsuits from companies that could lose their assets if such a scheme were used. Furthermore, he fears that responsibility for such a move would fall solely on Brussels and has demanded guarantees.

Euroclear itself, the International Monetary Fund, and the European Central Bank also oppose the "reparations loan" to Ukraine. ECB President Christine Lagarde noted that the plan to seize Russian assets is "only tenuously justified from a legal and financial standpoint."

Russian President Vladimir Putin compared Western actions against Russian assets to theft. His press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, warned that such actions would lead to prosecution—of both individuals and countries—and a complete collapse of trust in the principle of property inviolability.

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