The US Department of Justice announced the first transfer of confiscated Russian funds on Friday, with the aim of helping Ukraine, according to
CNN
.
"
I am announcing today that I have authorized the first-ever transfer of seized Russian funds, destined for Ukraine
," said Merrick Garland, adding that the confiscated assets followed the indictment of oligarch Konstantin Malofeyev in April.
This sum will go to the State Department “
to support the Ukrainian people
”, affirmed the minister.
The Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriï Kostin, present at his side, welcomed this transfer “
in the amount of 5.4 million dollars
” to “
rebuild Ukraine
”.
“
All Ukrainians have, in one way or another, suffered from this war.
We must ensure that the Ukrainian people receive compensation for the enormous damage suffered
,” he wrote on Twitter.
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Russian billionaire Konstantin Malofeev is considered one of the main sources of funding for pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
He had been charged with "
attempting to evade sanctions by using accomplices to secretly acquire and run media outlets across Europe
", according to Washington.
Since the start of the invasion of Ukraine, the United States has announced numerous rounds of sanctions against Russian companies or citizens.
The American sanctions aim in particular to freeze the possible assets of these people in the United States and prohibit all the interactions between them with American banks.
