At a session on 16 April, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) supported a resolution calling for frozen Russian assets to be seized and used for Ukraine’s benefit.

According to the PACE news service, the assembly unanimously adopted a resolution calling for frozen Russian state assets to be transferred to a new fund for Ukraine's reconstruction.

PACE’s Political Affairs Committee approved the draft resolution at the end of January. It was reported at the time that the resolution proposed that the Council of Europe should take the lead with regard to the seizure of Russian state assets and their use for the reconstruction of Ukraine and establish an international compensation mechanism under Council of Europe auspices.

The mechanism would involve setting up an international trust fund into which frozen Russian assets from Council of Europe member and non-member states would be deposited.

The resolution also proposed the establishment of an impartial and effective claims commission, operating under recognised judicial norms, to consider applications from Ukraine and other entities (individuals and legal entities) affected by the Russian aggression.

The Committee urged Council of Europe member and non-member states holding frozen Russian assets to actively cooperate in transferring these assets to such a mechanism, which has the support of the EU, the US and the G7.

The draft resolution became a component of the compensation mechanism which was agreed on in principle at the Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik in the summer of 2023. As part of this plan, a register of losses from Russian aggression has already been established, and it began accepting applications on 2 April.

Read more - How the Register of Damage Caused by Russia's Aggression will work