EU agrees in principle to give profits from frozen Russian assets to Ukraine

Ukraine could receive the first 1bn of interest on the sequestered assets by early July

EU leaders have agreed in principle to commandeer a large majority of the profits generated from frozen Russian assets and give them to Ukraine.

The proposal could generate 3bn (2.6bn) this year and the first billion could be released to Ukraine by July, the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, said late on Thursday at the end of the first day of an EU leaders' summit in Brussels.