Final battle for Russia’s frozen billions

Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexander Kolyandr and Alexandra Prokopenko and brought to you by The Bell. This week we look at the battle over whether the EU will channel Russia’s frozen assets to Ukraine — and how Moscow is already responding.

Russia prepares fightback as EU moves to tap Moscow’s frozen reserves

The struggle over €210 billion of Russia’s reserves frozen in Europe is entering the decisive phase. At a summit next week, the EU is expected to take a decision on whether to use the funds to finance Ukraine. The European Commission has just taken a major step in that direction by securing the ability to decide the issue with a simple majority vote, not full agreement of all member states, despite opposition from Hungary and Slovakia. In response, the Russian Central Bank filed its first lawsuit against Euroclear and the Kremlin is lining up a response.