Switzerland freezes Russian assets worth almost $8 billion

The amount of frozen funds may increase if they fall under European sanctionsnew faces or identifying new contributions.In addition to assets in Switzerland, 15 real estate objects of Russian individuals and legal entities are blocked

Since February 28, the Swiss authorities have blocked Russian assets in the amount of 7.5 billion Swiss francs, or about $7.95 billion, the State Secretariat for the Economy of the country (SECO) reported.

“As of July 3, 2022, the amount of deposits of Russian citizens or individuals and legal entities declared to the State Secretariat for Economics amounted to 46.1 billion francs. As of November 25, 2022, assets frozen in Switzerland reached 7.5 billion francs,” SECO noted.

The department added that this amount “may vary both upwards and downwards.” “Frozen holdings can increase, in particular, when new individuals fall under the sanctions or if new holdings are taken into account. Conversely, it happens that assets blocked in advance must be released if the necessary verification is carried out, ”SECO explained.

In addition, the Swiss government froze 15 properties of individuals or entities that were subject to sanctions.

Earlier, the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, proposed to combine into one fund all the funds of the Central Bank of Russia blocked abroad and the assets of the “Russian oligarchs” confiscated due to sanctions, invest them, and use the income from these investments to pay compensation to Ukraine. “We have blocked €300 billion of reserves of the Central Bank of Russia and frozen €19 billion of Russian oligarchs’ money,” she said.

WP learned about controversy in the US Congresson the transfer of assets of Russians to Ukraine Politics

According to von der Leyen, the damage caused to Ukraine as a result of the military operation is estimated at €600 billion. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that more than $1 trillion is needed to restore the country. He noted that Western countries and companies will be able to "take patronage" over the affected regions, cities or enterprises.

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Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia Alexander Grushko called the proposal of the head of the European Commission an attempt "to find ways to legitimize the illegal sanctions adopted against our country and the theft of assets belonging to Russian individuals and legal entities." Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier that the West had stolen most of Russia's assets by freezing them.