Should Ukraine get Russia’s frozen reserves?

Ever sincegdp in February 2022 Western governments have made a show of clamping down on private Russian assets held abroad, from oligarchs’ yachts to forcing the sale of Russian-owned football clubs. But there remains a huge question mark over the really big money. Some $300bn of Russian central-bank assets are frozen in Western accounts as a result of sanctions. Given the horrors that Russia has inflicted on its neighbour, the idea of tapping this pot to help compensate and rebuild Ukraine has naturally arisen.The moral case to make Russia pay is obvious. It has waged war without provocation, without regard to civilian lives and in frequent violation of international law. The damage to Ukraine has been vast: the cost of has hit $411bn, according to the latest estimates from the World Bank, which were compiled before the destruction of the Kakhovka dam. These sums are far beyond the capacity of Ukraine, which now has a of about $150bn. Western taxpayers should not have to foot all the bill.