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The European Union will provide Ukraine with an additional €1.4 billion generated from frozen Russian central bank assets, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Wednesday after condemning a deadly Russian attack on the Kyiv region.
The funds consist of interest and windfall profits generated during the first half of 2026 from Russian assets immobilised under EU sanctions, according to a statement from the European Commission.
The money was transferred to the EU budget and will be made available to Ukraine to support its continued resistance against Russia’s war.
“Russia must pay for the destruction it has caused,” von der Leyen said. “And we are using the proceeds from the immobilised Russian assets to make sure it does.”
The 1.4 billion-euro transfer is the fifth payment generated from the frozen Russian assets.
The EU has so far received a total of €8 billion in revenue from the immobilized funds, including four previous tranches transferred to Ukraine. The earlier payment was made in March.
“This will support Ukraine’s continued resistance against Russia’s illegal war,” von der Leyen said.
The EU froze more than €200 billion in Russian central bank reserves held within the bloc as part of sanctions imposed following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Much of the money is held by Euroclear, a Belgium-based clearing house.
A broader proposal to use the frozen assets to support a large loan for Ukraine failed to gain approval last year.
EU countries instead approved a 90 billion-euro loan backed by the bloc’s common budget to finance Ukraine through 2027.
Von der Leyen denounced what she called Russia’s “horrible atrocities” after an overnight missile and drone attack on the Kyiv region killed at least 17 people and wounded dozens more.
Ukraine has appeared in recent months to be stabilizing the front line and carrying out strikes deep inside Russia during the four-year war.
Russia has also sharply increased attacks on the Ukrainian capital, frequently launching volleys of ballistic missiles that are difficult to intercept.
Kyiv has warned that it faces critical shortages of air defense systems.
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