On November 7, House Foreign Affairs Committee Republicans of the United States almost unanimously (40:2) voted to transfer to Ukraine sovereign funds of the russian central bank and property rights that were blocked by sanctions.
The bipartisan bill recommends to president Joe Biden to give secretary of state Antony Blinken the authority to transfer russian assets to compensate for war damages caused to Ukraine. Within 180 days, the draft law will enter into force, all assets will be directed to the Ukraine support fund, and ownership of assets and their income will be transferred to the US government. At the same time, Antony Blinken and the US Agency for International Development will compile a list of industries in war-torn Ukraine that are most in need of assistance.
It is noteworthy that the structure of the draft law provides for a clause that reduces to zero any ways of returning confiscated assets back to their russian owners.
"It's time for Russia to be held accountable for the war it started," Maya McCall, the Republican representative who introduced the bill in the House.
