戰爭賠償 讓好戰國很難翻身 Reparation comes after the war

【雙魚之論】英文拷到 G / D 找中文翻譯
The reparation comes after war, which is a fact ignored by most of the people. Those who see war as a measure to consolidate nationals and centralize power for a few political leaders tend not to mention that critical part. War not only costs lives but also weakens a country.

大多數人忽略戰爭之後要賠償。那些認為戰爭是團結國家和少數政治領袖集權手段的人往往不提這一關鍵部分。戰爭不僅奪去生命，還會使一個國家變弱。

$200 billion in frozen Russian assets could help rebuild Ukraine. Europe is trying to figure out how    CNN / Taimocracy 翻譯 20230630

London CNN — Russian assets frozen in European accounts could generate billions of dollars a year for rebuilding Ukraine. But can that money be used without breaching international law or damaging the euro’s international standing?　 凍結在歐洲帳戶中的俄羅斯資產每年可以為重建烏克蘭創造數十億美元。但是，這筆錢能否在不違反國際法或損害歐元國際地位的情況下使用？

European Union leaders grappled with that question at a meeting of the European Council in Brussels Thursday.　 歐盟領導人週四在布魯塞爾舉行的歐洲理事會會議上努力解決這個問題。

“The European Council took stock of the work done regarding Russia’s immobilized assets,” the leaders said in a statement after the meeting, adding that they would continue to work on the issue “in accordance with EU and international law, and in coordination with partners.”　「歐洲理事會評估了有關俄羅斯固定資產的工作，」領導人在會後的一份聲明中表示，並補充，他們將繼續「根據歐盟和國際法，並與合作夥伴協調」就此問題開展工作。

The World Bank estimates Ukraine will need at least $411 billion to repair the damage caused by the war. And the EU and its allies are determined to make Russia foot part of the bill.　 世界銀行估計烏克蘭至少需要4110億美元來修復戰爭造成的損害。歐盟及其盟友決心讓俄羅斯分擔其中的部分費用。

One idea put forward in the EU is to draw off the interest on income generated by Russian assets while leaving the assets themselves untouched.　歐盟提出的一個想法是提取俄羅斯資產產生的收入利息，同時保持資產本身不變。

This approach would probably deliver about €3 billion ($3.3 billion) a year, according to Anders Ahnlid, the director general of the Swedish National Board of Trade and head of the EU working group looking into frozen Russian assets.　瑞典國家貿易委員會總幹事兼調查凍結俄羅斯資產的歐盟工作組負責人Anders Ahnlid表示，這種方法每年可能會帶來約30億歐元（33億美元）的收入。

“It’s the best way of using these assets in accordance with EU and international law,” Ahnlid told CNN, noting that was also the view of lawyers at the European Commission, which has promised to propose a way to tap frozen Russian assets within weeks.　「這是根據歐盟和國際法使用這些資產的最佳方式，」Ahnlid告訴美國有線電視新聞網，並指出這也是歐盟委員會律師的觀點，歐盟委員會已承諾在幾周內提出一種利用凍結的俄羅斯資產的方法。

“The Commission will come forward with a proposal and we will focus prudently on the windfall profits from the immobilized assets of the Russian central bank,” Commission president Ursula von der Leyen told reporters in Brussels Friday at the end of the two-day meeting.　 「委員會將提出一項建議，我們將謹慎關注俄羅斯中央銀行凍結資產所獲得的暴利利潤。」委員會主席Ursula von der Leyen在布魯塞爾的記者會上這樣說，該記者會是在經歷了為期兩天的會議後的星期五。

But some EU member states, and the European Central Bank (ECB), have expressed concerns that even a carefully targeted plan could shake confidence in the euro as the world’s second biggest reserve currency. The EU has been at pains to contrast the illegality of Russia’s invasion with its own strict adherence to the rule of law.　 然而，一些歐盟成員國和歐洲央行（ECB）對於即使是精心制定的計劃，也表達了擔憂，擔心這可能會動搖歐元作為世界第二大儲備貨幣的信心。歐盟一直非常強調俄羅斯入侵的非法性，並強調自己嚴格遵守法治原則。

“We have to respect the principles of international law,” said a senior EU diplomat, who requested anonymity because he is not authorized to discuss closed-door meetings. “It’s a matter of reputation, of financial stability and trust.”

The ECB declined to comment.　「我們必須尊重國際法原則，」一位要求匿名的歐盟高級外交官說，因為他未獲授權討論閉門會議的內容。「這是一個聲譽、金融穩定和信任的問題。」歐洲央行拒絕置評。

How it would work　會如何操作

After the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February last year, EU and Group of Seven countries imposed unprecedented sanctions on Russia, freezing nearly half of its foreign reserves — some €300 billion ($327 billion) — among other measures.　在去年2月全面入侵烏克蘭之後，歐盟和七國集團國家對俄羅斯實施了前所未有的制裁，凍結了其近一半的外匯儲備——約3000億歐元（3270億美元）——以及其他措施。

Around two-thirds of that, or €200 billion ($218 billion), sits in the EU, mostly in accounts at Belgium-based Euroclear, one of the world’s largest financial clearing houses.　其中約三分之二，即2000億歐元（2180億美元），位於歐盟，主要在總部位於比利時的歐洲清算銀行Euroclear的帳戶中，Euroclear是世界上最大的清算銀行之一。

Euroclear plays a crucial role in global markets, settling cross-border trades and safekeeping more than $40 trillion in assets.　Euroclear在全球市場上發揮著至關重要的作用，結算跨境貿易並保管超過40兆美元的資產。

The group said in April that cash on its balance sheet had more than doubled over the year to March to stand at €140 billion ($153 billion), boosted by payments associated with frozen Russian assets, including bonds.　 該集團在四月份表示，其資產負債表上的現金在截至三月的一年內增加了逾一倍，達到1400億歐元（約合1530億美元），其中包括與俄羅斯凍結資產（包括債券）相關的款項。

Ordinarily, these payments would have been made to Russian bank accounts, but they have been blocked as a result of sanctions and are now themselves generating vast amounts of interest.　通常，這些款項本應支付給俄羅斯銀行帳戶，但由於制裁而被凍結，現在它們本身也產生了巨額利息。

Euroclear routinely invests such long-term cash balances and, in the first quarter, it recorded €734 million ($802 million) in interest earned on cash balances from sanctioned Russian assets.　 Euroclear經常對此類長期現金餘額進行投資，在第一季度，它從受制裁的俄羅斯資產的現金餘額中記錄了7.34億歐元（8.02億美元）的利息收入

The plan proposed by the EU working group would involve using a special levy to collect the windfall interest income made by Euroclear from frozen Russian assets, which would then be paid into the EU budget for the reconstruction of Ukraine.　
歐盟工作小組提出的計劃涉及使用徵收特別稅來收取Euroclear從俄羅斯凍結資產中獲得的暴利利息收入，然後將這些款項支付到歐盟預算中，用於烏克蘭的重建。

Speaking on the sidelines of Thursday’s EU meeting, Latvia’s Prime Minister Arturs Krišjānis Kariņš said frozen Russian assets were “low-hanging fruit.”　 拉脫維亞總理Arturs Krišjānis Kariņš在週四的歐盟會議期間表示，凍結的俄羅斯資產是「唾手可得的果實」。

“We need to find a legal basis to utilize, mobilize these assets to help… pay for the damage Russia is causing in Ukraine,” he said.　他表示：「我們需要找到一個合法的基礎來利用、動員這些資產，以幫助支付俄羅斯對烏克蘭造成的損害。」

But one senior EU official warned of unintended consequences, such as causing other countries or investors to worry about the safety of their assets in Europe.　
然而，一位高級歐盟官員對可能產生的意外後果提出了警告，例如可能讓其他國家或投資者擔心他們在歐洲的資產安全。

“Those who have money might think ….’what if one day, I’m on the list,’” the official, who also requested anonymity because the discussions are private, said Wednesday.　「那些有錢的人可能會想......『如果有一天，我在名單上怎麼辦』」，這位官員週三表示，他也要求匿名，因為討論是私下的。

One way to reduce risks to the EU would be to coordinate action with the G7. “I think discussion at the G7 is quite key,” the official added.　減少歐盟風險的一個方法是與G7協調行動。「我認為G7的討論非常關鍵，」這位官員補充說。

Ahnlid echoed this, noting that many EU member states had stressed the importance of the bloc taking steps “in tandem with G7 partners.”　 Ahnlid對此表示贊同，並指出許多歐盟成員國強調了歐盟「與G7夥伴一起」採取措施的重要性。

— James Frater contributed reporting.