The economist predicted negative consequences from the withdrawal of frozen assets of the Russian Federation

The European economy risks facing negative consequences due to the confiscation of Russian assets, which may lead to a decrease in its attractiveness to investors and business partners, Maxim Chirkov, Associate professor of the Department of Economic Policy and Economic Measurements at the State University of Economics, told Izvestia on March 3.

Earlier, on March 2, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that there was no consensus among the participants of the summit on the Ukrainian conflict in London href="https://iz.ru/1847766/2025-03-03/tusk-soobshchil-o-raznoglasiiakh-v-es-po-rossiiskim-zablokirovannym-aktivam?utm_source=yxnews&utm_medium=desktop&utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fdzen.ru%2Fnews%2Fstory%2F50cc9e0a-2bbd-56bf-8679-0163e9467207">regarding the withdrawal of frozen Russian assets. According to him, most of the leaders of the countries expressed the opinion that the seizure of assets of the Russian Federation is a good idea, but some reacted to this proposal with caution, fearing "consequences for the euro or the banking system."

"It is impossible to legally seize Russian assets, and it is obvious that in case of confiscation of reserves, Russia will respond with similar measures," Chirkov explained.

According to him, measures to seize Russian resources are impractical for European countries and the best option for Europe would be to immediately lift restrictions and restore normal economic relations.

"The level of political tension that contributed to the current initiatives has decreased significantly. Russian pragmatics is beginning to prevail over political narratives, and this trend is likely to intensify in the future," the expert concluded.

European officials began discussions on February 22 the possibility of withdrawing about $280 billion of frozen assets of the Central Bank of Russia and using them to restore Of Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron said on February 24 that Russian assets frozen by the EU could not be confiscated, since this initiative href="https://iz.ru/1844514/2025-02-24/makron-ukazal-na-nevozmozhnost-konfiskovat-zamorozhennye-aktivy-rf">противоречит the laws of international law. Later, on March 1, there was a loan agreement has been signed, the funds will be received from income from frozen Russian assets.

In addition, on March 3, Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that attempts to seize Russia's frozen assets for transfer to Ukraine would have href="https://iz.ru/1847963/2025-03-03/v-kremle-predupredili-o-posledstviah-peredaci-zamorozennyh-aktivov-rf-kievu " target="_blank">serious legal consequences. He noted that there have been more and more such ideas in the West lately. According to Peskov, the sensible voices of those who urge people to come to their senses and not destroy investor confidence turned out to be in the minority