Europe Agrees to Give Russia's Billions to Ukraine

Newsweek ^ | May 21, 2024 | Isabel van Brugen

[canuck_conservative]

Russian central bank assets.

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said the move will hand Ukraine up to €3 billion (about $3.3 billion) this year.

"We have approved in the EU using revenues from Russia's central bank's frozen assets to help Ukraine," wrote Lipavsky on X, formerly Twitter. "Up to €3B only this year, 90% goes for Ukraine's military. Russia must pay for its war damages."

The financial assets were frozen shortly after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Reuters reported this month that the EU has estimated that by 2027, windfall profits from Russia's central bank assets frozen in the world's largest trading bloc could reach €20 billion (about $21.7 billion). The frozen assets have been gaining a huge amount of interest because they are stuck.

More than two-thirds of Russia's frozen sovereign assets are stashed in the EU...

[Cronos]

Britain in the 1890s

Britain in the 1890s KNEW that it was going to be replaced by the USA, that's in all the fiction and non-fiction books from the UK at that time. So they determined to make the USA a strong ally and trading partner and to make the USA "follow the British cultural mores" -- and they succeeded, just as they did to some extent with India, Singapore, etc.

[icclearly]

What I AM saying is that BRICS is not the threat.
a more likely scenario is that the USA becomes first among equals

Your comment makes does not make sense.

There are many threats, and clearly, BRICS is one of those threats to the continued use of the dollar for inter-country trades and, thus, our reserve currency status -- just like the pound sterling relinquished its status.

Will it happen overnight? No. Will we see a decline over some period of time (five years or less) as the US (and West) continue to confiscate/steal/seize foreign assets and run massive deficits, which threaten the long-held belief of the US as a "safe haven" investment and willy/nilly use sanctions as a political tool?

YES!

[icclearly]

Britain in the 1890s KNEW that it was going to be replaced by the USA

I'm not so sure about that.

That period was the sweet spot of the Victorian era and jingoism. It's not much different than some of the crazy Freepers and other naive souls of today.

Their view was that "the sun never sets on the British Empire."

Except that it did! Just like so many before.

[Publius]

Actually, Rudyard Kipling suspected that the end might be near. He stated that most eloquently in his 1897 poem, "Recessional."

[Darksheare]

Libya apparently.
It’s now a CIA fiefdom.

[icclearly]

Actually, Rudyard Kipling suspected that the end might be near. He stated that most eloquently in his 1897 poem, "Recessional."

Very interesting!

His crystal ball was all polished up and working like a champ.

I'm pretty sure he was a real hero in that time -- NOT.

We can add "sage" and "prophet" to his accolades :-).