April 2024 | 153 comments (153 topical, editorial, 0 hidden)

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Kyiv School of Economics hosted a meeting with Daleep Singh, Deputy National Security Advisor, 11 Apr

On Wednesday, 10 April, Kyiv School of Economics hosted a meeting with Daleep Singh, United States Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics. In this capacity, he coordinates the administration's policymaking process for a range of issues at the intersection of economic policy and national security.
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neighbourhood-enlargement.ec.europa.eu | Multi-agency Donor Coordination Platform for Ukraine meets in Kyiv, confirms unwavering support to Ukraine's recovery and reconstruction (11.04.24)
This ninth meeting, brought together Ukraine, the G7 countries as well as the Republic of Korea, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden, as well as observers from Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, Belgium, Finland, and Switzerland. It was co-chaired by European Commission Director-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations Gert Jan Koopman, Minister of Finance of Ukraine Sergii Marchenko, and the US Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics Daleep Singh...Since February 2024, it expanded to four additional members, namely the Republic of Korea, The Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden. Furthermore, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, Belgium, and Finland, as well as Switzerland are observers. International Financial Institutions [IFIO] and Organisations, namely the European Investment Bank [EIB], the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development [EBRD], the International Monetary Fund [IMF], the World Bank [WB], the Council of Europe Development Bank [CEDB], the International Finance Corporation [IFC] and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD] also participate in the ["]platform["].

ua.usembassy.gov | Why We Can Still Imagine a Positive Vision for Ukraine's Future , 10 Apr

From Imagination to Realization
Let's talk about how we realize this future—specifically, how we catalyze a virtuous cycle of investment, innovation, growth, reform, democracy, and Western integration.
The first step is to UNLOCK THE VALUE of Russian sovereign assets frozen within our jurisdictions for the benefit of Ukraine. International law is clear on this point. Russia must pay for the damage it has caused in Ukraine. And it is not for Russia to decide if or when that happens.
FT | Examining the wrinkles of the Russian assets set-off plan (12.04.24)
As a matter of law, the legal gap between freezing and seizing assets is big enough to have stopped the Biden administration and the other G7 nations that hold frozen Russian assets from making that transfer. And in that legal logjam we have been stuck for the past two years....
Every G7 leader has agreed that Russian sovereign assets in our jurisdictions will remain immobilized until Russia pays for the damage its war has caused. We welcome the EU's recent decision to ensure that revenues from Russia's immobilized sovereign assets are used for Ukraine's benefit. We are working closely with our G7 partners to explore how we can maximize the impact of these revenues—both current and future—for the benefit of Ukraine today, not only for the direct financial benefit it would provide, but also for the signal it will send to Putin: we will not fatigue, and you will not outlast us.
...The answer, BDS [Lee Buchheit, Hugo Dixon, and Daleep Singh] argue, lies in finding a technique that merges the right of set-off with Ukraine's legal claim [to reparations from] Russia. The BDS proposal is that the G7 nations make a joint loan to Ukraine for, say, $300bn—roughly the value of the frozen assets. Ukraine backs the borrowing by using its [claim] to reparations from Russia as collateral.
When Ukraine obtains a judgment against Russia, perhaps by a tribunal set up by the G7 and Ukraine, Russia won't pay (and will question the validity of the tribunal). A properly structured loan could relieve Ukraine from its debt [to the G7] by allowing it to assign its reparation [claime] to its [G7] creditors. At that point, the creditors, including the US, will possess both frozen ["immobilised"] Russian assets and a claim against Russia. Voila, set off....
Second, Ukraine and its public and private creditors must work together to agree on debt restructuring.
...The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act [FSIA] sets out the rules for protecting foreign states' property from judicial process. Foreign central bank deposits in US bank accounts enjoy protection: A court cannot touch that money as long as it belongs to the central bank and is used for normal banking purposes. There are, however, ways of moving money out of a bank account without going through the courts. Set-off allows a bank automatically to collect money that an account owner owes it. At least one US court has allowed a domestic bank to collect a debt owed to it by a foreign state by setting it off against money it held on behalf of that state's central bank....
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