Hoosier State Today

U.S. Senator Todd Young, along with a bipartisan group of Senate colleagues, has called on the Biden administration to transfer over $300 billion in seized Russian assets to aid Ukraine. The request was made in a letter addressed to Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Senators Lindsey Graham, Richard Blumenthal, and Tim Kaine also signed the letter.

The senators referred to the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity (REPO) for Ukrainians Act as a means to provide additional support to Ukraine using confiscated assets from Russia's Central Bank and other sovereign entities. "How does the Administration view using all financial tools at its disposal to increase pressure on Russia to end the war? Specifically, does the Administration believe that U.S. and EU-held assets should be used as leverage in negotiations with Russia to bring an end to the war?" they wrote.

The letter highlighted that following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, significant Russian central bank assets were frozen globally, with most held within European banks and only $5 billion in U.S. institutions.

In April 2024, Congress passed the REPO Act authorizing asset seizure from Russia. The G7 agreed in July 2024 to use interest profits from these frozen assets for loans under the $50 billion G7 Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration Loans initiative. In December 2024, $20 billion was disbursed by the Treasury Department as part of this initiative.

However, current policies focus only on using windfall profits rather than seizing assets themselves. The senators seek clarity on whether this approach sufficiently deters Russian aggression and what further steps might be taken under the REPO Act.

The letter concludes with a request for a briefing on these issues: "As Congress seeks to support your efforts to bring this war to an end, it is our aim to understand the Administration’s thinking on this important issue."