Assets seized from oligarchs: Sell them, as the Canadian government is doing.

The solution is strong, unsettling, and could even become very effective. Especially if it were followed internationally by more countries. Government of Canada has decided to liquidate the assets seized from the oligarchs succeeded and to donate the proceeds from sales to the families of the victims of the war in Ukraine.

Assets seized from oligarches sold to war victims

The decision was told to the Corriere della Sera Ukrainian Finance Minister Sergii Marchenko called on Canada's neighbors, from the United Kingdom to the United States, to do the same. The advantages of such a move are at least twofold. On the one hand, it helps Ukraine and its people in a concrete way, including through donations that can become very substantial. Secondly, it contributes to loosening the relationship between Putin and his oligarchs, the Moscow regime's loyalists. Something is going wrong here. It's now clear that the majority of Russian magnates don't want the war unleashed by Putin: some have fled abroad, others have disappeared and even died. Few are protesting loudly, but they are furious at the loss of their wealth. At this stage, the economic component of the war could be decisive. And the West, in addition to the weapon of sanctions and reducing its dependence on Russian gas, also has the weapon, only partially implemented, of seizing the oligarchs' assets, and then selling them.

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ASSETS SEIZED FROM OLIGARCHS AND THE US GOVERNMENT

Also the White House It seems intent on following the path set by the Canadian government. And that would be truly sensational. The American president Joe BidenAs part of a $33 billion-plus aid package to Ukraine submitted to Congress for approval, he requested special powers to directly sell assets seized from the oligarchs and to allocate the funds for further aid to Ukraine.

ASSETS SEIZED FROM OLIGARCHS IN ITALY

In Italy the seizures of the oligarchs' assets have been very partial, and have essentially concerned company, yacht e cityIn total, we're looking at around €1 billion in assets that, technically, have been frozen and not confiscated, given the lack of a court ruling to this effect. The risk, under these conditions, is that we'll find ourselves with a mockery: that the State will also foot the bill for maintaining the confiscated assets. The possibility of selling them, as has been done in Canada, is quite controversial, and according to Professor Massimo Panebianco, a lecturer in international law, the freezing of the oligarchs' assets could already be challenged before the European Court of Justice. But perhaps, given the unusual times we live in and the impotence of the UNIt might be worth taking a risk and sidelining the only source of real opposition to Putin: the oligarchs who have enriched themselves over time through the privatization of state-owned companies. There will always be time to discuss this in court, in any court.

Cover image source: Corriere della Sera

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