The countries of the European Union should consider withdrawing Russia’s frozen foreign exchange reserves and sending them to Ukraine for post-war reconstruction.

This was stated in an interview with the Financial Times by EU Foreign Minister Josep Borrell.

Borrel said the United States had taken control of billions of dollars in assets belonging to the Afghan central bank, in part to potentially compensate victims of terrorism, as well as humanitarian aid to the country, and it would be logical to consider such steps with Russia’s reserves.

“I would be very in favor, because it is logical. The money is with us, and someone has to explain to me why it is good for Afghan money and bad for Russian money,” he said.

At the beginning of the war, the EU and its allies froze hundreds of billions of dollars in foreign exchange reserves held by the Central Bank. Russia said in March that it had frozen about $ 300 billion of its gold and foreign exchange reserves in excess of $ 600 billion.

Borrel said the question of how to pay for Ukraine’s reconstruction is one of the key political issues, given the “incredible amount of money” that will be involved. He would like the discussion on methods of providing “military compensation” to come from Russia.

Borrell said the decision would not be unprecedented, citing a US decision to allocate $ 3.5 billion in frozen assets of the Afghan central bank for needs, including humanitarian aid and compensation to the families of 9/11 victims.

“This is one of the most important political issues: who will pay for the reconstruction of Ukraine?” Borrel said.

It will be recalled that last week the International Donors’ Conference dedicated to fundraising for Ukraine affected by the war raised $ 6.5 billion .

Read about how Ukraine needs to be rebuilt in the article by Andrius Kubilius, a member of the European Parliament and former Prime Minister of Lithuania –  Reconstruction Plan together with membership: what Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction should be like .