EU Advances New Russia Sanctions and Plan to Tap Frozen Assets

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the European Union is advancing work on two fronts aimed at increasing financial and political pressure on the Kremlin. She announced that the bloc is preparing another package of sanctions against Russia and is making progress on a mechanism to make use of frozen Russian assets. Von der Leyen indicated that the effort to channel proceeds from the immobilised assets would be directed toward supporting Ukraine, including its reconstruction needs. She did not disclose specific figures or timelines but emphasised that both the new sanctions and the asset-use framework are moving forward in parallel.