The US is assisting Ukraine financially with funds seized from a Russian oligarch
The US Department of Justice announced on Friday the first transfer of some confiscated Russian funds with the goal of assisting Ukraine, according to AFP on Saturday. “I am announcing today that we have authorized the first transfer of seized Russian funds to Ukraine,” Merrick Garland said, adding that the assets were seized following the April indictment of oligarch Konstantin Malofeev. That amount will go to the State Department “to support the Ukrainian people,” said US Attorney General Merrick Garland. Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andrii Kostin, present with him, welcomed this transfer “worth 5.4 million dollars” for the “reconstruction of Ukraine.” “All Ukrainians have suffered, in one way or another, as a result of this war. “We must ensure that the Ukrainian people receive compensation for the enormous damage they have suffered,” he wrote on Twitter.
Russian billionaire Konstantin Malofeev is considered one of the main sources of financing pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. He was accused of “trying to evade sanctions by using accomplices to secretly buy and run media outlets across Europe,” according to Washington. Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the US has repeatedly announced sanctions against Russian companies or citizens. They are aimed in particular at freezing the possible assets of such persons in US territory and prohibiting all their interactions with American banks. Prosecutors said in court papers late last year that they were entitled to the money in Malofeyev’s account at Denver-based Sunflower Bank because he sought to transfer it to a business partner in violation of U.S. sanctions. Since Malofeyev did not contest the forfeiture request, prosecutors said on Thursday that the funds should be forfeited by default. The KleptoCapture task force has temporarily seized other oligarchs’ assets, including a $300 million yacht, but has not yet won orders to permanently forfeit them.
By Sara Colin
