The House Foreign Affairs Committee has overwhelmingly approved a bipartisan and bicameral bill to use frozen Russian assets for the benefit of Ukraine, Voice of America reports.
The document states: "To authorize the Secretary of State to provide additional assistance to Ukraine, as well as for other purposes, using assets confiscated from the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and other sovereign assets of the Russian Federation."
According to Republican Congressman Michael McCaul, who introduced the bill, the bill requires the Biden administration to transfer frozen sovereign assets of the aggressor country to Ukraine.
"We need a plan to win as soon as possible, and this plan must ensure that the United States does not bear this burden alone. That is why I have introduced a bill to restore economic prosperity and opportunity for Ukrainians. It's time for Russia to pay for the war it is paying for," McCaul said.
The bill stipulates that the Secretary of State, in conjunction with the US Agency for International Development, must provide the relevant congressional committees with an "assessment of Ukraine's most pressing reconstruction, security, and humanitarian assistance needs within 180 days of the law's enactment, if passed."
According to the document, the confiscated funds would be accumulated in a special Fund for Support of Ukraine, and "if necessary, the ownership of and income from the confiscated Russian sovereign assets would be transferred to the United States Government."
McCaul emphasized during the congressional hearing that his bill also makes it impossible for these assets to be returned to Russia until it pays compensation to Ukraine.
