Enforcement and Accountability in International Law ♦ Winter 2026

From Deep Freeze to Seize: The Legal Case for Confiscating Russian Sovereign Assets for Ukraine

Trent Buatte

The day after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, G7 countries froze $280 billion of Russia’s sovereign assets. The international community agrees Russia’s invasion violates the prohibition on aggression, a legal obligation owed to every State. But whether countries can seize Russia’s assets has sparked fierce debate among governments and scholars. This Article seeks to better understand the sovereign immunity owed to central bank assets and importantly adds to the conversation a deeper analysis of the prohibition on unlawful expropriation. This Article argues that G7 countries are best served articulating a countermeasures basis to seize Russia’s assets. Countermeasures provide an established legal means to breach an international obligation in order to induce another State to comply with international law. This Article explores three underexamined theories within the countermeasures framework.