Putin Ally Warns EU Against Seizing Russian Assets for Ukraine’s Reconstruction

Russia would likely confiscate the assets of European Union countries, if the bloc takes frozen Russian funds to finance Ukraine’s reconstruction, according to Vyacheslav Volodin, chairman of Russia’s lower house of parliament and an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

Last week, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that she was crafting a proposal that would take the profits from Russian frozen state assets to finance Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction. 

“Such a decision,” Volodin said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app, “would require a symmetrical response from the Russian Federation.  In that case, far more assets belonging to unfriendly countries will be confiscated than our frozen funds in Europe.” 

Russia said Sunday that it shot down 36 drones overnight over the Black Sea and the Crimean Peninsula.  Ukraine, which has stepped up its campaign against Russia, has not commented on the overnight attack. 

From their meeting in Japan Sunday, G7 trade ministers issued a joint statement on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, calling it a “brutal, unprovoked, unjustifiable and illegal war of aggression.”

Russian universities have reportedly been instructed to stop any negative discussions during academic activities about any Russian political, economic and social trends, the British Defense Ministry said Sunday,

This move marks yet another “restriction of the information space in wartime Russia,” the ministry said, “making it more difficult to openly discuss policy issues.”

This restriction, the ministry said, will likely further add to “the trend of Russian policy-making taking place in an echo-chamber of politically acceptable, pro-Kremlin perspectives” in the runup to President Vladimir Putin’s anticipated bid for reelection in March, the British ministry said. 
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