The amount of Russian assets frozen in Switzerland following sanctions once morest Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine stood at 7.5 billion Swiss francs (7.6 billion euros) as of November 25, the Secretariat said on Thursday. of State for the Economy (Seco).
This is almost a billion Swiss francs more than the amount that was made public by Seco in July.
Switzerland is a popular destination for Silver Russians or companies from the country, especially because it is a hub for commodity trading.
To the 7.5 billion are also added 15 real estate properties in six Swiss cantons, indicated the Seco but without giving further details on the nature of these properties.
Erwin Bollinger, who is responsible for bilateral economic relations at the State Secretariat, nevertheless explained that the amount “does not reflect the effectiveness of the sanctions”, during a press briefing.
Indeed, the Swiss authorities are sometimes required to block funds as a preventive measure, the time to make the necessary checks and assess whether they fall under the many sanctions imposed on Russia since its invasion of Ukraine on February 24. .
If the funds are found to be free of sanctions, following a review that can be complicated and time-consuming, they are then released.
Swiss neutrality questioned
The Federal Council, the Swiss government, decided very soon following the start of the invasion to align itself with the sanctions imposed by the European Union, not without being criticized by those who see it as an attack on the sacrosanct principle of neutrality of the Swiss Confederation.
Banks are prohibited from accepting deposits from Russian nationals or natural and legal persons established in Russia if the total value of deposits per person exceeds 100,000 francs. A measure aligned with the European Union.
In total, 46.1 billion francs were declared within the framework of the sanctions once morest Russia and 400 million francs concerning Belarus.
Since the prohibition on depositing funds and the obligation to declare do not apply to Swiss nationals or nationals of a Member State of the European Economic Area, the 46.1 billion francs do not therefore reflect the total funds of of Russian origin detained in Switzerland, specifies the Seco.
