Former government minister Stef Blok is going to coordinate the Dutch approach to dealing with sanctions against Russia, foreign affairs minister Wopke Hoekstra has told MPs.

Blok, a former foreign affairs and finance minister, will supervise the freezing of Russian assets in the Netherlands, including confiscating property and boats.

Ministers decided last week to bring in a coordinator after considerable criticism of the slow Dutch start.

Over a month since Putin’s troops invaded Ukraine, the Netherlands has sequestered almost €516 million in Russian goods and contracts, most of which has come via banks and trust offices, ministers said last week. A further €155 million in transactions has been halted.

The new total is still well below the €80 bn in Russian assets which the Financieele Dagblad suggests are based in the Netherlands, of which €45 bn belongs to people on the sanctions list.