Russian officials angry over US aid to Ukraine and asset seizure

After the US House of Representatives passed a bill to provide aid to Ukraine and seize frozen Russian assets, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev posted on Telegram, calling the US House vote an act aimed at increasing the number of casualties in the military campaign that Russia is conducting against Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, claimed that US aid to Ukraine approved by the House of Representatives "will kill more Ukrainians" but enrich the United States.

For her part, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharkova commented that the US providing military aid to Ukraine, Israel and allies in the Indo-Pacific would "deepen the crisis worldwide".

Watch video of the US House of Representatives passing a bill to provide aid to Ukraine on April 20, 2024. Source: Reuters

Previously, on April 20, the US House of Representatives passed a huge aid package worth 95 billion USD, including nearly 61 billion USD for Ukraine, 26 billion USD for Israel and 8 billion USD for US allies in the Indo-Pacific.

Of these, the aid bill for Ukraine received 311 votes in favor and 112 votes against; the aid bill for Israel received 366 votes in favor and 58 votes against; the aid bill for US allies in the Indo-Pacific received 395 votes in favor and 34 votes against.

For Ukraine, the package will provide nearly $14 billion to train, equip and fund the needs of the Ukrainian military. Kiev will also receive $10 billion in “forgivable or deferred loans” to support Ukraine’s economy and budget, including the energy and infrastructure sectors.

After passing the House of Representatives, the above bills need to be approved by the US Senate before being sent to President Joe Biden to sign into law.

Earlier on April 17, President Biden said that if the bills were passed, he would immediately sign them into law to send a message to the world that: America always stands side by side with friendly countries.

In a related development on the same day, with 360 votes in favor and 58 votes against, the US House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill providing for the confiscation of frozen Russian assets in US banks and their transfer to a special fund for Ukraine.

According to statistics, there are currently about 300 billion USD of Russian assets frozen by the West, most of which are frozen in Germany, France and Belgium, with only more than 6 billion USD in US banks.