Posted on 10/25/2022 2:17:16 PM PDT by dennisw
Can Brussels raid the tens of billions of euros in Russian assets frozen by the European Union to pay for Ukraine’s recovery?
This thorny legal question is currently under examination by the EU Commission as the cash-strapped bloc looks for potentially €18 billion ($18 billion) next year to keep Ukraine afloat as it fends off Moscow’s invasion.
Ursula von der Leyen, the EU Commission's president, told reporters on Tuesday in Berlin that she had set up a task force to both map what assets exist as well as the preconditions that must be met to seize them.
“The will is there, but legally it is not trivial. There is a lot of work still in it to reach that goal,” she said during a press briefing on the sidelines of an international conference of experts for the reconstruction of Ukraine.
“Always to keep in mind we insist on the rule of law, and therefore we abide by the rule of law, and therefore this process has to be legally sound.”
Importantly, it's unclear whether this may eventually include the wealth of the Russian state or just illicit funds from Russian oligarchs, which is potentially easier to seize if illicitly gained.
Ukraine believes there is anywhere between $300 billion to $500 billion in Russian assets for the taking, which would go far in helping it rebuild, Ukraine Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Tuesday. He said critical economic infrastructure equivalent to 45% of its annual output has been destroyed since the war started and it expects its budget deficit next year to therefor amount to €38 billion.
“We must make sure the offender pays,” he said. “Too many times over the course of history we saw that the aggressors avoided the consequences.”
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
Now you are just lying. If it wasn't a real war you wouldn't care so much. We are in an undeclared war with a nuclear power over a territory that is historically Russian and, if things go sideways, we will all burn.
Now look who is the liar. I never said it wasn't a "real war" - it very clearly is. I just said that we aren't at war, which we aren't. I've been there myself, have relatives in every branch, and know the difference between us being at war, and us supplying another nation that is at war. The difference being that I'm not worried about a family member getting killed in combat.
Lying is like breathing to some people. You know Americans are already in the Ukrain as "observers" and manning most of the high tec weapons we are dumping into the Ukraine. The Ukes cannot keep up this fight much longer and the criminals that rule us will start throwing the youth of America into their Forever War money making machine. Disgusting.
Shocking that the Russians can't manage the massive propaganda coup of capturing even one U.S. soldier to parade around. All they can do is lie about 70 year old flag officers supposedly fighting in Mariupol. So either the Russian military is mind-bogglingly incompetent, or we just aren't there. Or both.
I'm getting tired of debating anti-American propagandists. I didn't engage with your ilk in the past, and I'm seeing no reason to continue doing so now. You're hardly unique in your hatred for the U.S., so it's not like I'm hearing anything new or even remotely interesting.
So you have just a truly blessed day.
Chin, hou will be bitterly disappointed if you keep following Biden and his communist pet flying monkeys and hope that something good will come out of it. Delusional.
If that doesn't tell conservatives what's up, then NOTHING can clue those benighted people in.
Look at the pushback we get from the freepers who chugged the blue and yellow neokoolaid.
It’s day 245. Not much way to ratchet it up more than what Putin has already done.
Putin started the war. So his oligarchs and him must pay
Sadly, the U.S. Feral government has already been down this path. It is a waste of time to pretend this is not the case. The only law is the law of might. That has always been true, but for a while they used to pretend to respect property rights a little.
We live in a lawless age. This, in itself makes things more unstable than they would otherwise be.
When I buy that confiscated Russian yacht at auction, I’ll invite you onboard for the yacht girls. You too can live like a Rus oligarch! For 24 hours before I kick you off.
How much of that would actually make it to Ukraine....very little if they do it.
Thanks. You make very good posts on the current Rus invasion.
What is your position on getting Crimea back for Ukraine?
We signed an agreement with Ukraine that said we will ‘Never’ accept a Russian Crimea.
________
Crimea is Ukrainian, and due to international sea and ocean boundaries, Who owns Crimea, owns the oil and gas off shore. This is why Putin seized Crimea in 2014. It will be very difficult to kick out the Russians. But this war is full of twists and turns. So anything is possible.
Summary- I would love to see Ukraine owning Crimea again. This also defends Odessa and all the Ukrainian grains shipped out of there. The black soil there (Ukraine) is four meters deep. For a hungry world to eat from.
Nope.
dennisw,
Thanks, I’ve always appreciated your commentary over the years.
Much appreciated!
Well, that's a spectacularly ignorant analogy.
But, no matter, whatever you want to call it, if it didn't exist you and I would not be having this conversation. Most likely we'd be radioactive dust.
"They" and not "we". Interesting. Not that I agree with the original energy sanctions -- the correct course would be for US to undercut Russia by going on a wartime footing to increase production, first.
I'll consider the source of the criticism - FR Class of 2004 peanut gallery...
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