Skip to content
Bramble

Politics

Miliband says Europe has "big decisions to make" on frozen Russian assets

Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband told the Warsaw Security Forum that Europe must return to the question of frozen Russian sovereign assets and that Britain is willing to act alongside the EU. The Daily Mirror reports he suggested using their full value, not only the profits and interest.

2 outlets · 2L · 0C · 0R First reported Account updated
Image: The Guardian
Image: Daily Mirror

1 / 2

The story, neutrally told

Left · 1Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said on 13 October that "Europe has big decisions to make, including on Russian sovereign assets" and that "we need to return to this issue". Left · 2Speaking at the Warsaw Security Forum, Miliband said Britain is willing to act alongside the European Union, arguing that every wrong message sent to President Putin sets back European security and the Ukrainian cause. Left · 1The Daily Mirror reported that Miliband suggested the EU and Britain could revisit plans to use the full value of frozen Russian assets, rather than just the profits and interest accrued on them, to fund Ukraine directly.

Left · 1The Mirror said UK sanctions have frozen more than £25billion of Russian assets since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion. Left · 1The Guardian's live blog also carried a comment from Poland's foreign minister Radosław Sikorski, who said that using frozen Russian assets is "a complicated is[sue]". Left · 1Miliband also said Europe needs to "redouble our efforts on sanctions".

Left · 1Miliband said Russia is not winning the war and that Putin's advisers, including Lavrov, do not want to tell Putin the truth; Miliband added that Ukrainian resolve, which Putin did not expect four and a half years ago, has shocked the Russian leader. Left · 1Miliband, who visited Ukraine last week, called for an "energy ceasefire" and urged Western leaders to back Volodymyr Zelensky after Donald Trump's latest attack on the Ukrainian leader; the Mirror said European leaders are scrambling after Trump unveiled controversial plans to import Russian diesel. Left · 1Asked about Europe in 20 years, Miliband said the priority is to fight for values such as freedom, democracy and the rule of law, called himself "a proud European", and again declined to say whether the UK should rejoin the EU, according to the Guardian.

Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.

Left2 outlets

Framing
Both left-leaning outlets report Miliband's remarks as a UK push for European unity behind Ukraine. The Guardian runs them in a Europe live blog, and the Mirror leads on the possibility of revisiting use of the assets' full value.
Emphasis
UK readiness to work with the EU, Russia not winning the war, support for Zelensky, and (Guardian) Miliband's personal answer about European values and the EU question.
Leaves out or plays down
The Guardian excerpt gives no detail on what a change in policy would involve. The Mirror gives no view from EU governments, and neither gives a Russian response.
Charged language
“barbarity of Putin”“Ukraine's fightback”
For example
“Britain could use frozen Russian assets to directly fund Ukraine’s fightback against Vladimir Putin ’s invasion, Ed Miliband has suggested.” — Daily Mirror
“Ministers gets asked a slightly unusual question about what Europe could look like in 20 years.” — The Guardian

Centre0 outlets

No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.

Right0 outlets

No right outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.

Ask about this story

Loading…