Civil Society Statement: Frozen Russian Assets for Ukraine’s Victory – The Only Way Forward for Ukraine and Europe

Kyiv, October 31, 2025

Now Europe can match Ukraine’s courage with decisive action: converting €300 billion in frozen Russian assets into tangible support for Ukraine. The EU’s Reparations Loan represents significant progress, but it must be scaled to meet the magnitude of Russia’s destruction and structured to reinforce Ukraine’s resilience. This is the moment to transform European solidarity into resources and justice by using the aggressor’s own assets and to ensure Ukraine’s victory strengthens both Ukrainian democracy and European security.

We call on the EU and its Member States, especially Belgium, which has blocked the Reparations Loan decision, to take necessary steps to use Russian frozen assets in Europe to fund Ukrainian defence, economic and social resilience and democratic transformation. In Ukraine’s ongoing fight against Russian aggression, every day of delay has a detrimental cost paid by human lives.

Ukraine’s commitment to a democratic future comes from the citizens themselves. Ukrainians’ nationwide summer rallies against the decision to weaken the anti-corruption bodies, the first ones since 2022, showed the resilience of Ukraine’s democracy. Even in the face of the genocidal Russian full-scale war, Ukrainians demonstrated that the current fight is not only to defend our land against the authoritarian invader. This is a fight for freedom, the rule of law, and democracy that unite us with Europe. 

Today, Ukraine’s continuous democratic progress faces growing pressure and fatigue. The independence of key anti-corruption institutions is being tested, as seen in the July 2025 attempt to limit the powers of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) — swiftly reversed thanks to strong public mobilisation and principled EU engagement. Yet, cases of pressure on NABU detectives, persecutions of reformers and activists, and institutional resistance to change remind us that reform is a constant struggle, not a one-time achievement. 

Wartime centralisation of power, though necessary for defence, poses risks to institutional balance and political pluralism. Safeguarding democratic checks and independent institutions now will ensure that Ukraine emerges from this war not only undefeated militarily but also stronger as a democracy that Ukraine’s citizens have fought for since 2014.

In this context, when Ukraine’s EU accession process—the most potent framework for anchoring democracy and rule of law—remains stalled due to politicised vetoes, we, representatives of Ukrainian civil society, call on the European Union and its member states to make the Reparations Loan a real instrument to support Ukraine’s defence, economic resilience, justice, and continuous democratic transformation. 

The Reparations Loan’s major part should be allocated for unconditional defence aid to Ukraine, as a crucial component of defending European democracy and long-term stability against the Russian threat. Such support should include: 

• Direct procurement of weapons for Ukraine; 
• Targeted grants and loans to Ukrainian defence companies to boost production capacity; 
• And dedicated funding for joint arms manufacturing between Ukrainian and European partners. 

Meantime, we encourage the Ukrainian government to improve lethal defence procurement procedures, ensuring civil oversight, effectiveness, and accountability in using the funds to boost its defence industry sector and maintain the trust of society and international partners. 

We are also convinced that a share of the Loan should be directed toward macrofinancial support linked to precise and concise conditions in Ukraine’s good governance reforms for greater transparency and efficiency of the aid spent. Ukraine’s reform history demonstrates that clear EU conditionalities are effective: when these were specific and enforced, Ukraine established NABU, SAPO, and the High Anti-Corruption Court. When benchmarks were vague or unenforced, reforms stalled, as with Constitutional Court reform. Three out of four Ukrainians support stronger EU engagement on reforms, viewing it as a partnership and not an interference.

This part directed towards macrofinancial aid could support:

• Independence and protection of anti-corruption bodies (NABU, SAPO, HACC).
• Decisive participation of independent international experts in critical selections for key rule of law institutions.
• Effective renewal of the judiciary, including vetting and selecting the Supreme Court judges.
• Launch of a comprehensive overhaul of law enforcement institutions — to strengthen their resilience to political influence and prevent their use against Ukraine’s democratic transformation (the State Bureau of Investigation, the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Security Service of Ukraine, and the National Police).
• Zero tolerance for pressure on civil society, journalists, reformers, and whistle-blowers.
  

Now is the moment for Europe to act decisively:
to adopt the decision to launch the Reparations Loan from the frozen Russian assets and direct it first and foremost to strengthen Ukraine’s defence efforts, economic resilience, and democratic transformation. 

Ukraine’s fight is Europe’s fight — for justice, accountability, and a rules-based future. Ukraine’s victory is the victory of democracy and the security of a united Europe. 

Signed: (open for signatures)

1. DEJURE Foundation
2. Anti-Corruption Action Centre
3. All-Ukrainian Automaidan Association
4. Anti-Corruption Centre “MEZHA”
5. National Interest Advocacy Network “ANTS”
6. International Centre for Ukrainian Victory
7. Centre of Policy and Legal Reform (CPLR).
8. Future Development Agency
9. CHESNO Movement
10. Centre for Economic Strategy
11. Institute of Analytics and Advocacy
12. StateWatch Think Tank
13. UKRANIAN HELSINKI HUMAN RIGHTS UNION
14. Integrity & Development Ukraine
15. Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting
16. Anti-Corruption Headquarters
17. Advanter Group
18. ГО “Агенція регіонального розвитку Сіверського регіону України”
19. NGO “PROACTIVE COMMUNITY”
20. ГО “Червоний Губер”
21. ГС «Міжнародний інститут інтегрального розвитку»
22. ГО «ХОЧУ ВЧИТИСЬ!»
23. NGO “UKRAINE-EUROPE-WORLD”
24. Insight public organization 
25. Charitable foundation “Marsh zhinok”
26. NGO Nezalezni
27. ГО Правозахисна Організація Дім Права 
28. NGO “Detector Media”
29. NGO “Up2Ukraine”
30.  NGO Association of Project Managers of Ukraine
31. NGO “Business Association “WE KHERSONERS”
32. Ukrainian Capital Markets Association
33. NGO “Spirit and Letter” 
34. NGO Boykivske Ethnological Society
35. NGO ZORAX 
36.  NGO “Sustainable development and Innovation Agency”
37. Асоціація відкритих даних 
38. NGO Coordination Centre of Public Control
39. Transparency International Ukraine
40. Odesa Regional Organization of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine
41. NGO “4U”
42. Civil Network OPORA
43. NGO “Zaporizhzhia Investigations Center”
44. Agency for regional economic development of Boikivshchyna 
45. Center for Journalistic Investigations of Poltava Region “MediaProof”
46. ГО «Медіа група де-факто»
47.  NGO Rivne Center “Social partnership”
48. NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION ”AGENCY OF JOURNALISTIC INVESTIGATIONS ”FOURTH ESTATE”
49. NGO “Dialogue, Mediation and Alternative Dispute Resolution Institute”
50. NGL.media/NGO “Lviv Group”
51. Center for reforms and local development, NGO
52. NGO “Coordination Center for Public Control”
53. The VETERANKA Movement
54. Anti-corruption Research and Educational Center (ACREC)
55. CO “100 PERCENT LIFE” 
56. CF “Patients of Ukraine”
57. Civil Holding “GROUP OF INFLUENCE”
58. Social Capital NGO
59. HGO “Code 21”
60. NGO BCD
61. NGO “Historical Research Association “Patriot”
62. UkraineNow.ch Bern, Veraine
63. NGO “Crimean Tatar Resource Center”
64. NGO “Center of political analysis and forecasting “Crimea”
65. NGO “Crimean Tatar Youth Center” 
66. NGO “Detector Media”
67. NGO Institute of Mass Information