However, several officials said Japan’s stance was linked to U.S. opposition to using the Russian assets for Ukraine, arguing Tokyo doesn’t want to flout its crucial ally. Like the EU diplomats, they were allowed to remain anonymous to discuss sensitive matters.
U.S. President Donald Trump has signaled he intends to use the Russian assets to bring President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table.
Instead of sending the money to Kyiv, Washington has suggested handing part of the assets back to Russia and using the remainder to finance U.S. investments in Ukraine.
But European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen continued to support the idea of using the Russian assets to help Ukraine during a meeting on Monday with the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“Our Reparations Loan proposal is complex but at its core, it increases the cost of war for Russia,” von der Leyen wrote in a statement after the meeting, in which she was joined by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
“So the longer Putin wages his war, spills blood, takes lives, and destroys Ukrainian infrastructure — the higher the costs for Russia will be.”