Kiev could receive first payments from EU on income earned from Russian assets by July 1 if issues are resolved promptly - European Commissioner

VILNIUS. March 20 (Interfax/BNS) - Income from Russian assets frozen in the EU could flow to Ukraine as early as July 1 if EU member states promptly agree on the decision, European Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevicius said.

"If member countries decide quickly, the first payment could reach Ukraine as early as July 1," Sinkevicius told the Lithuanian national broadcaster, adding that interest income could reach Ukraine twice a year.

The European Commissioner said that these revenues would represent additional funds for Kiev, apart from existing EU obligations.

"The commission's lawyers are also confident they will be able to defend this decision in international arbitration. As a result, it has a chance of finally being approved," he said.

The issue of using windfall income from frozen Russian assets for Kiev will be discussed at an EU summit on March 21-22.

Top European diplomat Josep Borrell previously said that the EC's proposal on the use of frozen Russian assets provides that 90% of the funds will go to a fund that will cover the costs of purchasing weapons for Ukraine. The remaining 10% will be transferred to the EU budget and used to enhance the capabilities of Ukraine's own defense industry.

Interest on frozen Russian assets will total approximately 3 billion euro per year, Borrell said.

Commenting on future discussions on the issue at the EU summit on March 21-22, one senior European official told reporters the day before that the dialogue would be difficult and would likely not make it into the summit's conclusion statement.

The EU froze about 200 billion euros of Russian Central Bank assets held in the EU after the start of military operation in Ukraine in February 2022.