Switzerland resists Ukrainian plan to seize frozen Russian assets

Ignazio Cassis: ‘The right of ownership, the right of property is a fundamental right, a human right.’ Photograph: Alessandro Della Valle/EPA

Ukrainian plans to seize as much as $500bn (£418bn) in frozen Russian assets to fund the country’s recovery have met firm resistance from Switzerland, the hosts of an international two-day Ukraine recovery conference.

The Swiss president, Ignazio Cassis, pushed back on the plan, saying protection of property rights was fundamental in a liberal democracy. He underlined at a closing press conference the serious qualms of some leaders that proposals to confiscate Russian assets will set a dangerous precedent and needed specific legal justification.