Moscow Condemns EU Decision To Indefinitely Freeze Russian State Assets

Russia has accused European Union countries of acting in bad faith after the EU Council agreed to indefinitely freeze Russian state assets held within the bloc.

According to Russia's state news agency TASS, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Saturday, December 13, that European governments were behaving as“deceitful,” accusing them of undermining international law.

Under the decision, EU member states approved an unlimited freeze on Russian central bank assets held in euros, which have remained immobilized since the start of Russia's war in Ukraine.

European Commission proposals cited by Western media describe the move as a first step toward channeling profits generated from frozen Russian assets into loans and reconstruction support for Ukraine.

EU officials argue the measure is legal and necessary to ensure accountability, while maintaining that the principal assets remain frozen rather than formally confiscated.

Moscow has warned that any seizure of Russian assets would set a dangerous global precedent, damage confidence in Western financial systems, and prompt retaliatory measures against European interests.

Analysts say the dispute underscores the deepening economic confrontation between Russia and the West, as sanctions and asset freezes become central tools in the broader geopolitical standoff over Ukraine.

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