US to pay for confiscating Moscow’s assets – Kremlin

Moscow will not leave the potential US decision to hand over its frozen assets to Ukraine unanswered, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Saturday. His words came after the US Congress greenlighted a potential transfer.

“America will have to pay for this, if it is indeed so,” the Russian official said, referring to the potential confiscation. Moscow set no time limits for responding to Washington’s actions, he stated, adding that Russia will tailor its response to “serve our interests in the best possible way.”

The US would hurt itself if it proceeds with such a plan, the Kremlin spokesman warned. Confiscating Russian assets undermine the principle of “inviolability of private… and state property,” he said. Such a move would prompt many investors to withdraw their money from the US and cause “irreparable damage to the US image,” Peskov believes.

Peskov did not elaborate on what specific measures Moscow could take in response to the seizure of its assets.