‘Russia owes Ukraine blood,’ says UK MP urging state asset-seizure law
In Parliamentary debate, 7 February, UK lawmaker Chris Bryant MP called for the government to ‘lay before Parliament proposals for the seizure of Russian state assets to provide support for Ukraine; and for connected purposes.’
Bryant said that in September 2022, the World Bank and others had put the cost of reconstruction and recovery in Ukraine at $349 billion, and that more recent estimates had increased that figure to circa $630bn or more.
‘Someone has to pay, and there are only three options,’ said Bryant.
‘First, there is Ukraine herself, but her economy is projected to be 25% smaller this year than last. Secondly, there are her allies…Thirdly, there is Russia’s own debt to Ukraine.’
He said, ‘Russia is truly a great nation…but this is a war of aggression, and I hope that individuals…will face justice in the Ukrainian courts or at an international war crimes tribunal. My Bill simply requires the British Government to present plans to seize the assets belonging to the Russian Federation which are already frozen in the UK because of the sanctions we have imposed, and allocate them to Ukraine and the Ukrainian people.’
Bryant said that he anticipated objections to the plan, including the protection of sovereign assets, and the possibility of retaliation, but stressed:
‘This is a political decision, not a legal one. Nearly $350 billion of Russian Central Bank reserves have been frozen by democratic countries around the world, and £26 billion of that is frozen in the United Kingdom. Canada, Italy, the European Union and the United States are all considering action. It is the very least we owe the people of Ukraine. Russia has forfeited its rights to these assets. It owes Ukraine far more than money; it owes it blood.’
