Zelenskyy on frozen Russian assets: It will be a big loss for the Russians if we can get this money

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy considers the issue of frozen Russian assets to be "very important" because their transfer to Ukraine in one form or another would be "a big loss for Putin and people from his circle."

"It will be a very big loss for the Russians if we can somehow get this money. Whether it will be a loan under the guarantees of other countries, or another option. But if we can get these 140-160 billion, it will be a big loss for Putin and people from his circle. You know that this is their money. And that is why it really destabilizes their system, their clique. That is why I think it is very important," he said on Telegram on Thursday morning.

Zelenskyy also considers the transfer of assets to Ukraine a "big sanction" against the Russian Federation.

"And these are really big sanctions. Freezing money is one thing, and giving it to Ukraine is quite another. Not only for weapons. We will produce in Ukraine with this money. We will receive some kind of package from PURL, air defense is not only offensive weapons. We will buy missiles, air defense systems to protect the energy sector, etc. This will be an important signal to Russia: look, if you continue, you will lose from 35 to 80 billion next year on energy trade - depending on how the sanctions work - and plus 140 billion on frozen assets. This is an important tool for establishing peace," he said.