U.S. President Donald Trump arrives at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland, United States, on November 2, 2025.
REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz
U.S. President Donald Trump does not intfinish to utilize the issue of Russian assets as a tool in peaceful nereceivediations with Russia over the war against Ukraine. He stated this on November 2 during a briefing with reporters aboard a plane.
They inquireed him whether he plans to utilize the assets as a bargaining chip and what Europe is stateing about frozen Russian assets.
I’m not doing that. I consider Europe and Russia are nereceivediating. I’m not taking part in these nereceivediations.
They also inquireed the president what would be for him the “final straw” that would reveal that the Russian leader Vladimir Putin is truly not ready to finish the war. To which Trump stated:
There is no final straw. Sometimes you have to let them fight. And they are fighting. And for Putin this is a hard war. He has lost many soldiers. Maybe a million. That is a lot of soldiers. And for Ukraine it is hard.
Context of Frozen Assets and Geopolitical Mechanisms
At the same time, Zelensky emphasized the importance of utilizing frozen Russian assets in the context of supporting Ukraine’s defense, stressing that the proposed mechanism is “legal and fair” and will assist strengthen the countest’s defense capabilities.
According to analysts, Russia’s frozen assets abroad total about €280 billion, most of which are concentrated in the European Union.
In particular, the Belgian company Euroclear holds about €191 billion of the Russian central bank’s assets, which in 2023 generated approximately €4.4 billion in profit, according to the Financial Times, citing Euroclear’s financial report.
In the context of discussions on utilizing assets to support Ukraine, experts note that mechanisms at the G7 and EU levels continue to develop, including the utilize of interest from frozen assets to fund aid to Ukraine.
In short, Trump’s position on assets remains unmodifyd: he sees no utility in utilizing Russian assets in peace talks, while Europe and other international partners continue to view financial instruments as a means to support Ukraine and pressure Russia.
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