French Minister of Economy and Finance Bruno Le Maire stated that France has frozen assets worth approximately 850 million euros belonging to wealthy members of the Russian ruling elite, including yachts, apartments, and bank accounts in France following the invasion of Ukraine. Le Maire reported, "We have frozen 150 million euros from personal accounts and lines of credit in French institutions."
He added, "We have frozen real estate in France valued at 539 million euros, equivalent to about thirty properties or apartments, and two yachts worth 150 million euros," according to "France Press," which was reviewed by "Al Arabiya.net." The French finance minister noted that the total value of frozen assets owned by individuals from the Russian elite reached about 850 million euros on French territory.
Practically, freezing the properties means that their owners can no longer "use, sell, or invest them." However, it does not mean they are seized by the state or can be disposed of in any way, as asset confiscation requires the existence of a criminal offense. Le Maire emphasized that "the sanctions are painful for the Russian state and painful for President Vladimir Putin," confirming the freezing of 22 billion euros of the Russian central bank's assets.
Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, Western countries have imposed several packages of economic sanctions, to which Russia has responded with counter-sanctions. On Friday, the Russian central bank considered it "very difficult" to forecast macroeconomic conditions due to the sanctions. At the end of February, it doubled the interest rate to 20%, up from 9.5% previously.
