EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders said that "from his point of view," it would be possible to keep these 300 billion euros as a guarantee until Russia voluntarily participates in the reconstruction of Ukraine.
According to Reynders, the European Union has also frozen a total of 17 billion euros in Russian assets since the beginning of Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The assets of 90 people have been frozen in seven member states, including €2.2 billion in Germany, Reynders said.
"If it is money that comes from criminal businesses that the EU seizes, it is possible to channel it into a compensation fund for Ukraine. However, the amount is nowhere near enough to finance reconstruction," the commissioner told the Funke media group of newspapers.
Ukraine's Finance Minister Serhii Marchenko earlier said that Ukraine would need $38 billion a year for post-war reconstruction.