REPO 2.0 would implement the REPO Act and send frozen Russian sovereign assets under U.S. jurisdiction to Ukraine on a quarterly basis
Denver — U.S. Senator Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, joined U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch (R-Idaho) to introduce the REPO Implementation Act, bipartisan legislation to repurpose frozen Russian sovereign assets held in the United States to support Ukraine’s fight against Russian aggression. The legislation would build upon the senators’ Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity (REPO) for Ukrainians Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law in April 2024.
“Vladimir Putin is directly responsible for the death, destruction, and dislocation wrought by his unjustified and unprovoked war on Ukraine,” said Bennet. “This legislation will ensure that the United States works with our allies to continue leveraging Russian sovereign assets to support Ukraine’s fight for democracy.”
“Vladimir Putin and his corrupt regime must continue to pay for the brutal invasion of their peaceful neighbor. Russia’s frozen sovereign assets are the most appropriate target to give Ukraine the support it needs to defend and rebuild itself,” said Whitehouse. “REPO 2.0 will encourage the Trump administration and our G7 allies to start seizing frozen Russian assets and distributing them to Ukraine on a settled schedule to ratchet up the economic pressure on Putin.”
“Today, more than $300 billion in Russian sovereign assets remain frozen globally,” said Risch. “Given Russia’s brutality against the Ukrainian people, it was only right that Russian government funds in the United States be seized and repurposed to help Ukraine rebuild its country under the REPO Act. Now, the REPO Implementation Act will encourage our allies to use the Russian assets in their countries to do the same, and ensure that the assets under U.S. control are used pragmatically.”
The bipartisan REPO for Ukrainians Act gives the President the authority to confiscate Russian sovereign assets frozen in the United States and transfer them to assist Ukraine. The United States and our allies hold roughly $300 billion in frozen Russian sovereign assets.
Last October, the United States and G7 allies announced a collective $50 billion loan to Ukraine, to be repaid with funds generated by a subset of Russia’s frozen sovereign assets held in Belgium. The United States contributed $20 billion of the $50 billion loan from Russia’s proceeds, which was disbursed in December at no cost to taxpayers.
The REPO Implementation Act of 2025 would build upon this by:
- Transferring the estimated $5 billion in frozen Russian sovereign assets under U.S. jurisdiction to an interest-bearing account;
- Encouraging the President to repurpose at least $250 million from that account to benefit Ukraine every 90 days;
- Encouraging the Secretary of State, in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury, to implement a robust, sustained diplomatic campaign to persuade U.S. allies to begin repurposing at least five percent (approximately $15 billion) in Russian sovereign assets to benefit Ukraine every 90 days;
- Requiring reports on Russian sovereign assets held outside of the United States; and
- Effectuating technical corrections to the original REPO for Ukrainians Act.
Bennet has staunchly supported the Ukrainian people’s fight to defend their democracy since Putin invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Last month, he introduced an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act to ensure intelligence support to Ukraine. In May, Bennet and Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) introduced legislation to prohibit the United States from recognizing Russia’s false claims of sovereignty over Crimea or any other forcibly seized Ukrainian territory. In April, Bennet introduced legislation to impose sanctions on Russia – and actors supporting Russia’s aggression in Ukraine – if Russia refuses to engage in good-faith negotiations for a lasting peace with Ukraine or undermines Ukraine’s sovereignty after such a peace is negotiated. In February, he joined a bipartisan congressional delegation led by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) to Kyiv, Ukraine.
In September 2024, Bennet called on the Biden administration to allow Ukraine to use Western-supplied weapons to strike military targets in Russia, which President Biden authorized weeks later. Bennet also visited Lviv, Ukraine with Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate colleagues in early 2024.
In addition to Bennet, Whitehouse, and Risch, U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) cosponsored the bill.
The text of the bill is available HERE.