The US is asking Europe to seize $300B in frozen Russian assets to bring Putin to the negotiating table, but Europe opposes it.

Biden aides have tried to convince his European allies to support the transfer of frozen Russian assets to a new account that will only be released if a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine is reached. Most of Russia’s frozen assets are in European bank accounts.

According to CNN, the seizure of assets will be a message to the Kremlin: “If you want your money back, you will have to come and talk.”

The Biden administration has been closely discussing this issue with the US President-elect Donald Trump’s transitional team. Sources claim that Trump’s associates generally support the move, believing that the seizure of funds encourages Russia to negotiate, especially against the backdrop of Trump’s desire to end the war as quickly as possible. However, Europe does not support these efforts, fearing that confiscating Russian assets would violate international law. So far, only revenue generated by the frozen Russian assets, $5B annually, has been transferred to Ukraine.