Russia has quietly approached the United States with a proposal to buy Boeing aircraft using frozen state assets after a ceasefire is reached in Ukraine, according to a Bloomberg report. The request, reportedly made by Moscow officials, is not presented as a formal condition for a ceasefire, but rather part of a broader attempt to ease sanctions if hostilities end.
The Kremlin’s intention, shared by an unnamed source familiar with the talks, hinges on the unfreezing of billions in Russian central bank reserves currently blocked by Western nations. Roughly $280 billion in total has been frozen globally, with about $5 billion (£4 billion) located in the United States. Over two thirds of the assets are frozen in the European Union. Russia believes that these funds could be redirected to purchase American-built planes from Boeing.
Brian Hughes, a spokesperson for the US National Security Council, reiterated that Washington will not consider any economic negotiations until fighting stops. Both the US State Department and Boeing declined to comment, while the Kremlin has so far remained silent on the matter.
Russia has also publicly called for the United States to lift sanctions on its national airline Aeroflot and to resume direct air travel between the two countries. No response has been issued by the United States regarding these demands.
Since the full scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, Boeing has shut down all operations in Russia, including a major engineering centre. Russian airlines, banned from Western airspace and cut off from buying Boeing or Airbus aircraft and spare parts, have faced severe pressure. In an attempt to keep planes in the air, many were forced to cannibalise parts from grounded aircraft, raising serious safety concerns.
Russia has also seized 400 foreign aircraft leased to domestic airlines, while allocating 300 billion rubles (£2.55 billion or $3.7 billion) from its National Welfare Fund to cover compensation for seized aircraft. According to local estimates, before sanctions were tightened, around 165 Boeing and Airbus planes made up approximately 40 percent of Russia’s airline fleet.
The prospect of easing sanctions and resuming aircraft purchases comes amid wider global shifts in aviation trade. Boeing is facing resistance in key markets as US President Donald Trump continues to push tariffs on international goods. China has recently stopped accepting new Boeing aircraft, while Ryanair has threatened to delay its Boeing deliveries if tariffs continue to impact costs.
Russia’s plea for postwar access to its frozen funds signals its urgent need to rebuild an ageing and heavily sanctioned aviation sector.
But the United States State Department remains firm that no financial discussions can begin until Russia halts its aggression against Ukraine and commits to peace.
