Legal Basis of Sanctions against Russia and Asset Confiscation

Abstract

"This study provides an in-depth examination of the legal bases for current asset freezes in the European Union (EU) and the United States (US), and how these differ from confiscations of Russian state assets. It explores the evolving political deliberations that have led to new goals of making reparations to Ukraine, which has suffered extensive damage estimated at more than 600 billion euros as a result of Russia’s invasion. The primary focus of this study is on the potential confiscation of frozen state assets of Russia as a means to achieve reparations. Western governments have initiated comprehensive assessments of avenues to perform permanent asset seizures, with the overarching goal of strengthening the tracing, identification, freezing and management of assets as preliminary steps for potential confiscation. The study discusses the legislative pitfalls associated with sovereign asset confiscation, its challenges and limitations. It highlights how the principle of sovereign equality of states can hinder such actions, protecting the assets of Russia’s central bank from court proceedings and execution in another state. Despite Russia’s actions contravening the fundamental norms of international law, interpretations of customary international law maintain Russia’s immunity from legal proceedings in foreign courts. Therefore, it can be concluded that there are no legal bases for the expropriation of Russian sovereign assets. Keywords: confiscation of assets, Russian assets, reparations, legal considerations, International law, sanctions, sovereign equality."