The recent flourish of “peace plan” meetings involving the EU, US and Zelensky have been all about grabbing the Russian assets–
Ukraine will present revised 20-point peace plan to US today after Zelensky was promised billions in frozen Russian assets to fund war efforts
Ukraine is set to present a revised 20-point peace plan to the US on Tuesday after President Volodymyr Zelensky was promised billions of pounds of frozen Russian assets held in the UK to fund its war effort.
Deal to release ‘£100bn of Russian assets’ for Ukraine expected imminently
A deal to release up to £100bn of frozen Russian assets in Europe to aid Ukraine is just days away, Downing Street believes, after Sir Keir Starmer and allies held crunch talks in London yesterday.
The prime minister said talks about the future of Ukraine have reached a “critical stage”, while European leaders agreed that pressure on Vladimir Putin must be ramped up.
Sir Keir met with French president Emmanuel Macron, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and German chancellor Friedrich Merz at 10 Downing Street on Monday as Mr Zelensky warned that Kyiv “can’t manage” without European and American backing.
It came after British officials said they were hopeful a deal would be agreed to unlock the value of immobilised Russian sovereign assets in the coming days.
The Times reported that the value of the assets will be up to £100bn, including around £8bn held in UK bank accounts.
“The leaders agreed that, while diplomatic efforts continue, Europe must stand with Ukraine, strengthening its ability to defend against relentless attacks that have left thousands without heat or light,” a Downing Street spokesperson said.
After the talks, Sir Keir convened a call with other European allies, during which leaders agreed that “now is a critical moment and that we must continue to ramp up support to Ukraine and economic pressure on Putin to bring an end to this barbaric war”, No 10 said.
Mr Zelensky said Monday’s talks had been “a detailed discussion on
our joint diplomatic work with the American side, aligned a shared positionon the importance of security guarantees and reconstruction, and agreed on the next steps”.
The US is entirely involved.
“We also held a separate discussion on further defence support for Ukraine. I am grateful to the leaders for their willingness to stand with our people and help us on the path toward bringing peace closer,” he said in a post on social media.
Before the meeting began, Mr Zelensky had said that the issues under discussion were “very important for unity between Europe and Ukraine, and also unity between Europe and Ukraine and the United States”.
“We can’t manage without Americans, we can’t manage without Europe, and that is why we need to make some important decisions,” he said.
Mr Macron, meanwhile, said Ukraine’s allies have “a lot of cards”, pointing to the funding of equipment and arms for Ukraine, the Ukrainian resistance and the economic impact of sanctions imposed by the US and Europe on Russia as positive signs.
Mr Zelensky’s visit to London comes after his officials concluded three days of talks with their US counterparts on those proposals as the White House presses Kyiv to accept a deal.
Over the weekend, the Ukrainian leader said he had discussed “next steps” with Mr Trump’s advisers and was “determined to keep working in good faith”.
Related;
*Why Paris cannot withdraw 18 billion of Russia’s Assets in French Banks
*Turkey to guarantee flow of Russian Gas to Hungary
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban have agreed that Türkiye will guarantee that Russian gas can continue to flow to Hungary, the premier said on Monday.
Hungary has maintained its reliance on Russian energy since the start of the conflict in Ukraine, prompting criticism from several European Union and NATO allies.
Hungary signed a 15-year deal in 2021 with Russia to buy 4.5 billion cubic metres of gas annually, and increased purchases from Gazprom last year, importing some 7.5 billion cubic metres of Russian gas via the Turkstream pipeline.
“Today I agreed with the president that you, Turkey, will guarantee the route so that we can transport (gas) from Russia to Hungary,” Orban said.
Türkiye is the only transit route left for Russian gas to Europe after Ukraine chose not to extend a five-year transit deal with Moscowwhen it expired at the beginning of the year.
The frozen assets are being treated not as aid, but as a bargaining chip – to be deployed only if Ukraine stabilises the situation on the battlefield or if Russia can be pressured into concession
A final decision on the assets is expected in December. But even if approved, the funds may be disbursed in cautious tranches, tied to battlefield developments and political optics,locking Ukraine into the unforgiving calculus of great power rivalry between Russia and the West.
It is December 9/25- Looks as if something has been worked out.