The European Union earlier this week approved a plan that will allow profits earned by investing frozen Russian assets in Europe to be used for weapons for Ukraine, but Ukrainian Justice Minister Denys Maliuska says the yearly package of more than $3.2 billion is "almost nothing" compared to what Ukraine needs to fight Russia.
"If we are talking about the needs of Ukraine and the needs of the war, military and nonmilitary, [$3.2] billion is actually almost nothing," Maliuska told Politico this week at the G7 justice ministers' meeting in Venice. "We need hundreds of billions in order to win the war."
He conceded that the money is a "good first step," but said he's skeptical about how far the money will go.
The EU has mobilized more than $216 billion of Russia's state assets to help out with reconstruction efforts for Ukraine, but Maliuska said Ukraine wants to get "full confiscation" of Russia's assets.
"[We] really believe this is lawful and this is the only approach which will be decisive in terms of the resolution of the war," he said.
EU leaders in February agreed on another $161 billion support package for Ukraine.
"This locks in steadfast, long-term, predictable funding for Ukraine," European Council President Charles Michel said at the time.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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