EU Sends First $1.6 Billion From Frozen Russian Assets to Ukraine as Kremlin Vows to Retaliate

European Union officials said Friday that the first tranche of money from frozen Russian assets have been sent to support Ukraine as it resists Moscow’s invasion, while the Kremlin threatened to retaliate against what it calls theft of its sovereign property. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen announced on July 26 that $1.6 billion of the interest the European Union has made from holding some $225 billion in frozen Russian central bank assets has been made available to Ukraine, as Kyiv pleads for more Western aid. “The EU stands with Ukraine,” Ms. von der Leyen said. “Today we transfer 1.5 billion euros in proceeds from immobilised Russian assets to the defence and reconstruction of Ukraine. There is no better symbol or use for the Kremlin’s money than to make Ukraine and all of Europe a safer place to live.”...