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the courts. The top manager of the IMF, Julia Kozak, noted that the fund believes that decisions on the confiscation of Russian assets should be made by the countries where the frozen funds of the Russian Federation are placed, and is following current discussions to assess the possible impact of these decisions on the international financial system. In response, the Russian Federation is actively preparing to challenge any steps taken by Western countries to confiscate the frozen assets of its central bank, estimated at $300B, in favor of Ukraine. The Russian Central Bank is preparing to conclude agreements with international law firms representing Russia's interests in the event of legal proceedings. Moscow also ordered expert opinions providing analysis of relevant legislation abroad and precedents in other countries. Bloomberg sources are convinced that lawsuits will block any transfer of these assets to Ukraine, even if the Russian Federation cannot regain control over them.
Ukraine to reduce need for external financing in 2024. Ukraine will need over $37bn in external financing in 2024, which is around $5bn less than the country received from foreign partners last year, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Jan. 3.
According to him, in 2023, Ukraine attracted $42.6B in external financing, 27% of which were grants. The leaders providing support were the EU, the US, the IMF, Japan, Canada, and the UK.
Shmyhal emphasized that Ukraine is steadily increasing its budget revenues, primarily customs, and tax revenues. Last year, more than ₴1.1T in taxes, fees, and other payments were received by the state budget's general fund.
• US Aid
CIA director: Failing to pass Ukraine aid would be mistake 'of historic proportions'. Western allies failing to support Ukraine with sufficient military aid would mark a mistake "of historic proportions," CIA Director William Burns wrote in a column for Foreign Affairs Magazine on Jan. 30.
The US Senate supported the confiscation of Russian assets in favour of Ukraine on January 24. The US Senate Foreign Affairs Committee approved a bill that would help Washington confiscate Russian assets and hand them over to Ukraine in compensation for the devastation caused by the Russian war. If the legislative bill, On Restoration of Economic Prosperity and Opportunities for Ukrainians is passed by both the Senate and the House of Representatives and then signed by President Joe Biden, it will pave the way for the US’ first confiscation of assets belonging to the central bank of a country with which it is not at war. Senator Ben Cardin is optimistic that the bill will become law, noting that it has broad support from both Democrats and Republicans in the Senate and House of Representatives, as well as from the Biden administration. The House Foreign Affairs Committee passed a similar bill that received overwhelming bipartisan support. The EU, the US, Japan, and Canada collectively froze about $300B in the Russian Central Bank’s assets in 2022.
Support for Ukraine 'not charity.' Stoltenberg is visiting Washington, D.C. to persuade U.S. legislators to approve a $61bn aid package for Ukraine that has been stalled by congressional Republicans since October 2023.
Western analysts consider the confiscation of Russian assets a short-sighted decision and offer an alternative option. As The Hill explains,confiscation makes little sense because, First, confiscation of assets
58 UKRAINE Country Report February 2024 www.intellinews.com