(Bloomberg) -- The US will send funds obtained from a Russian smuggling ring to Estonia for the benefit of Ukraine, a Justice Department official said Saturday at the Munich Security Conference.
It's the second time the DOJ's KleptoCapture task force has made confiscated Russian assets available for Ukraine, and the first time Washington has passed on such assets to a foreign ally for the express purpose of assisting the country President Vladimir Putin's army invaded two years ago.
The US will transfer almost $500,000 secured from the breakup of an illicit network attempting to import a high-precision US machine tool to Russia, said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco.
The US intercepted attempts to export the tool known as a jig grinder, which can help develop dangerous weapons used for defense and nuclear proliferation activities, Monaco said.
Estonia will use the funds for a project to expedite damage assessments and critical repairs to the Ukrainian electrical distribution and transmission system, which have been targeted repeatedly by Russian missile attacks.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
Essential Business Intelligence, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice, Daily Fuel, Gold and Silver Prices and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.
