German Chancellor Opposes Transferring Frozen Russian Assets to US Control

Merz is drawing a jurisdictional line, not just a policy one: the frozen assets sit in Europe, so Europe claims the decision. That matters because allied unity on how to use Russian sovereign funds has so far been the assumption, and this signals a split over who controls the instrument. For markets, the read-through is about precedent — whether sovereign reserves held in one jurisdiction can be redirected under another's influence. Whether this becomes a broader European position or remains a German one is the open question.