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US Official Says No Update on Efforts to Seize Frozen Russian Assets as Talks Continue

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Banknotes of US dollars and rubles. - Sputnik International, 1920, 22.12.2023
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WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - A senior Biden administration official told reporters that talks with allies continue regarding efforts to seize frozen Russian assets, but there are no new announcements to make on this matter at present.
"I don't think we have anything to announce around changing the US position on seizing assets although I think we have been very public that that is a conversation that we're continuing in the context of those strategic things," the official said.
On Thursday, the New York Times reported that the United States and its European allies renewed discussions to go after $300 billion in frozen Russian assets and use them to aid Ukraine.
Russia has maintained that any attempt by the West to confiscate its frozen assets would violate international law.
Ten-ruble coins - Sputnik International, 1920, 21.12.2023
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US, Allies Renew Talks to Seize $300Bln in Frozen Russian Assets to Fund Ukraine - Reports
Financial institutions around the world risk being disconnected from the US financial system if they continue to facilitate transactions for goods important to Russia's military industrial complex, a senior US administration official told reporters.
"Ultimately, for almost any bank in the world, given the choice between continuing to sell a modest amount of goods to Russia's military industrial complex or being connected to the US financial system, they're going to choose being connected to the US financial system, given that our economy is far bigger and our currency is one used around the world. Fundamentally, people are not going to want to take that risk," the official said.
Over the next several weeks, the Biden administration will talk with US and European banks about the scope of the new executive order that will allow the use of secondary sanctions on financial institutions, which facilitate goods to Russia's defense industry, the official added.
The United States introduced a new tool that can be used to place secondary sanctions on financial institutions doing business with Russia, a senior Biden administration official said.
"This tool will be the first time that we're introducing a tool that allows us to use secondary sanctions to go after financial institutions during this conflict in order to provide us with a strong tool to disincentivize the type of behavior that is furthering Russia's ability to build weapons of choice that they are using in Ukraine," the official said.
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