One of the mechanisms Europe has at its disposal to make up the shortfall of American backing is to fully seize frozen Russian assets held in the region.

And without an American backstop, which Trump refuses to provide, even European forces in Ukraine would not be an adequate deterrent against future Russian aggression. Instead, the only truly effective option to save Ukraine is to seize the over $200bn in Russian assets currently frozen in Europe and to commit that money to supporting Ukraine’s economy,

On the eve of a major E.U. summit on defense and Ukraine, a group of Ukraine supporters and right activists gathered outside the European Council building on Wednesday, asking E.U. leaders to seize frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine’s fight for survival.