The U.S. Department of Justice has announced that it is seeking permission from the U.S. Congress to use more than $1 billion of frozen Russian assets to meet the needs of Ukraine.

The Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco told CBS News today, Monday: "We are seeking permission from Congress to use these assets for the benefit of the people of Ukraine."

Earlier, national security advisors from Britain, Germany, Italy, the United States, and France stated that Russian assets in their countries will remain frozen until "Russia pays for the damages it has caused to Ukraine."

The White House recently confirmed that Russian assets in France, Germany, Italy, and Britain will remain frozen until Russia pays compensation to Ukraine for "the damages it has inflicted."

After the start of the Russian-Ukrainian war, the West imposed broad sanctions against Moscow targeting the assets of the central bank and Russian businessmen and investors in Western countries.

For her part, the official spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, described the freezing of Russian assets as "theft."

She noted that EU countries are not only targeting private funds but also Russian state assets.