On April 24, 2024, President Biden approved a new law [3] providing $95.2 billion in security assistance and foreign aid to countries including Ukraine, Israel, and countries in the Indo-Pacific region. Notably, the law includes a provision named Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act, which allows the government to use seized Russian assets to support humanitarian causes in Ukraine. 

When Russia first attacked Ukraine in 2022, several countries, including the United States, froze Russian money and property in their borders. It is estimated that the frozen assets are worth more than $280 billion [4]. The European Union has taken measures [5] to use these assets to give weapons to Ukraine. However, this new law takes it a step further by permitting the government to establish mechanisms and procedures to use seized Russian sovereign assets to support and rebuild Ukraine.

The new law establishes a special account named the “Ukraine Support Fund,” into which the President may transfer seized Russian sovereign assets subject to U.S. jurisdiction. This money can be used for specific purposes, including economic and humanitarian assistance in Ukraine, reconstruction, rebuilding, and recovery efforts related to the war. The law also requires that the Secretary of State must notify Congress before using the money. Congress has the ability to prohibit such a transfer. 

The law also contemplates creating an international fund named "Ukraine Compensation Fund," through which the US and its foreign partners would collect seized Russian sovereign assets. The details of the fund have not yet been finalized, but the topic will be discussed during the G7 summit in June.