Moscow reminds West that it also has assets in Russia
4 Min Read
Russia's Finance Minister says Moscow's response to the West seizing its assets will not be nice if the West confiscates Russian assets blocked abroad.
-
Russia's Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, left, attends a session at the State Duma, the Lower House of the Russian Parliament in Moscow, Russia, on Friday, November 17, 2023. (AP)
Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov stated today in an interview with RIA Novosti that if the West applies its threats to Russia and confiscates Russian assets blocked abroad, Russia's response will not be nice. He stressed that the West also has assets in Russia that could be endangered if the latter's funds are used.
“This is not a question for us, we are following the decisions of Western countries,” Siluanov emphasized then added "We have frozen no less [of Western funds]. Any actions with our assets will receive a symmetrical response.”
Since the Ukraine-Russia conflict began in February 2022, Western countries have frozen an estimated $300 billion in assets belonging to the Russian central bank, which the UK and US have recently threatened to take and use for aiding Ukraine.
On the other hand, in the same context of seizing the funds, the EU has been aiming to use the interest earned from these Russian assets at the clearinghouse Euroclear.
Western assets in Russia may equal Russia's in West
Many European countries have warned that such confiscation of the funds would affect the Western financial system negatively and destroy trust in the euro.
Siluanov warned that global players are monitoring the Russian assets and analyzing possible outcomes as he further elaborated “The Chinese are reducing their exposure to American securities – this is a consequence of what is happening [with Russian assets]. The reliability of the dollar and the euro has been compromised."
Siluanov did not dive into details regarding the amount of Western assets currently held in Russia, however, calculations by RIA Novosti expect these assets to be roughly equal to the size of the Russian funds frozen abroad.
At the end of 2022, the total foreign direct investments in the Russian economy by the EU, G7, Australia, and Switzerland was $288 billion, RIA Novosti reported last month.
Moscow has repeatedly criticized the legitimacy of the asset freezes, stressing that this action constitutes “thievery” and warned of retaliation in case the West confiscates the funds.
IMF warns of risks from Western seizure of Russian assets
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) cautioned on Thursday that Western plans to seize frozen Russian assets could pose a threat to the global monetary system and entail unforeseen risks.
"From our perspective, it is important that any actions have sufficient legal underpinnings to avoid potential risks, and these include risks of litigation, risks of countermeasures, and risks to the international monetary system," IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack told reporters.
This development comes a day after a team of legal experts deemed that the confiscation of Russian assets is permissible under international law, citing Russia's ongoing special military operation in Ukraine.
While there was a belief that these funds should remain inaccessible to Russia unless it assists in Ukraine's reconstruction, there was disagreement over the legality of outright asset seizure.
They therefore sought guidance from a team of ten international law experts and practitioners, who unanimously affirmed in a joint letter that the seizure of assets is entirely legal.
"We have concluded that it would be lawful, under international law, for States which have frozen Russian State assets to take additional countermeasures against Russia, given its ongoing breach of the most fundamental rules of international law, in the form of transfers of Russian State assets as compensation for the damage that has resulted directly from Russia’s unlawful conduct," the experts in the letter, which was obtained by Bloomberg.
