U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced on Wednesday that he had given the go-ahead for the first transfer of confiscated Russian assets to Ukraine.
The U.S. Department of Justice charged Konstantin Malofeyev, a Russian oligarch, with breaching sanctions imposed on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine last year. The United States claimed that he had provided funds to Russians who were promoting separatism in Crimea.
Malofeyev accumulated his wealth through investments in various industries, including banking, telecommunications, and media.
Garland also revealed that last year authorities had seized millions of dollars from an account at a U.S. financial institution that could be linked to Malofeyev’s sanctions violations. In February, he authorized the transfer of that money to Ukraine.
“While this represents the United States’ first transfer of forfeited funds for the rebuilding of Ukraine. It will not be the last,” Garland said in a statement.
The expropriated money will be sent for the reconstruction of Ukraine in response to Moscow’s military operation, which began in February 2022.
Congress passed a law in December 2022 directing the Department of State to award certain proceeds from confiscated Russian assets to Ukraine.
Garland announced the first such transfer in February, which involved $5.4 million seized mostly from Malofeyev’s investment into a Texas bank.
At the same time, Garland announced taskforce KleptoCapture, which involved a group of prosecutors, agents, analysts, translators, and other Justice Department personnel and law enforcement partners who have been prosecuting and effecting seizures against “sanctioned enablers” of the Kremlin and Russian military.
“And we are also exercising new authority granted by Congress to transfer certain assets we have seized from Russian oligarchs for the rebuilding of Ukraine,” Garland said. “Earlier this month, I authorized the first-ever transfer of such assets to the State Department to support the people of Ukraine.”
Such transfers of assets seized by the United States from Russians have been criticized by Moscow as “barbaric.” Moscow has threatened to respond with similar actions if deemed necessary, labeling the United States’ actions as “theft” and cautioned that it violates international law.
The Justice Department’s War Crimes Accountability Team has been collaborating closely with Ukrainian authorities to probe into specific crimes committed by Russian military personnel, such as assaults on civilian sites. The United States has unwaveringly supported Ukraine throughout Russia’s aggression and invasion since it began around 14 months ago.
“Over the past year, the Ukrainian people have shown the world what courage looks like,” said Garland in February. “For as long as it takes, the Department of Justice will continue to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our Ukrainian and international partners in defense of justice and the rule of law.”
The United States has spent many billions supporting Ukraine amidst its war with Russia. Republicans have sought to curb such spending where possible.
Former President Donald Trump, a Republican, recently said he could resolve the conflict within a day if he were elected president again in 2024. During a CNN town hall, Trump said that ending the war and preserving human life is more important than determining who won.
“If I’m president, I will have that war settled in one day—24 hours,” Trump said during a May 10 town hall in New Hampshire.
He said he would meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying they both have weaknesses and strengths, indicating his confidence to negotiate with both.
“I don’t think in terms of winning and losing,” Trump said in response to a question about which side he wants to win. “I think in terms of getting it settled so we stop killing all these people and breaking down this country [of Ukraine].”
When pressed by the CNN moderator, Kaitlin Collins, with the same question, Trump said: “I want everybody to stop dying. They’re dying—Russians and Ukrainians. I want them to stop dying.”
Trump lamented how many Russian and Ukrainian people have died, along with how many cities have been ruined. He was adamant that none of it would have happened if he had still been president.
During his administration, Trump was able to calm North Korea’s belligerence—a task former President Barrack Obama had said would be Trump’s “most urgent problem.” Putin also wasn’t able to make inroads in the Eastern Ukraine conflict during Trump’s term.
Reuters contributed to this report.
