The European Union's economics commissioner says G7 talks in Italy could lead to an agreement next month on using profits from frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine.
G7 finance ministers are discussing how they could get funds from the Russian central bank's 300 billion euros in blocked assets, AFP reported.
EU Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni said the talks in Stresa were about "how to move forward on the path" the 27-member bloc has already taken.
This week, the EU formally approved a plan to use interest from the bloc's frozen Russian assets, a move it hopes will generate up to three billion euros a year to help Ukraine.
A more ambitious idea being discussed in the G7, proposed by the United States, involves creating a $50 billion line of credit for Ukraine against future interest generated by Russian assets.
Gentiloni suggested discussions would continue at next month's G7 summit in Puglia, but pointed to the "positive convergence that is happening" in Stresa.
"There are a lot of details that still need to be clarified and explored, but the way forward using the additional gains seems to me an interesting direction," he told reporters on the sidelines of the talks.
He added that "in the medium term, this could lead to an agreement" approved by the G7 leaders.
Italy's Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti also told reporters that the Stresa group was looking for "the basis for a decision for the mid-June summit" in Puglia.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen urged her counterparts on Thursday to adopt "more ambitious options" for funding Ukraine, expressing hope that participants at the Stresa meeting would be able to arrive at "concrete options" to be presented at the June 13-15 G7 summit. / BGNES
