Author: Timothy Ash

In the midst of Putin’s ongoing war on Ukraine, questions arise about the lack of Western support for the country. Despite the significant GDP gap between the West and Russia, Ukraine’s survival is attributed more to the bravery of its people than to external assistance. A lack of leadership from the US and Europe has hindered effective action against Putin’s aggression. The failure to understand the gravity of the situation and the ideological battle at hand has weakened the West’s response. Putin’s subversion tactics and the West’s timid approach have only emboldened him. The West’s hesitance in providing Ukraine with…

If Ukraine is going to defeat Russia and rebuild itself after the war, it will need huge sums of money, probably exceeding what Western electorates and politicians are willing or able to provide. The good news is that there is a massive pot of non-Western money already available: the $300 billion of frozen Russian sovereign assets held in Western jurisdictions. The bad news is that Western countries have been unable to agree on a shared plan of action to use these assets. Frozen Russian reserves could tip the scales of the war in Ukraine’s favor and greatly reduce the financial…