Damages from aggression could be compensated with Russian property

Russia should bear responsibility for aggression in Ukraine with its assets. The assets could be arrested through the lawsuits to the European Court within two hours. In Ukraine, they amounted up to UAH 4 billion.

This was stated by Heorhiy Lohvynsky, head of the subcommittee on international legal issues and internally displaced persons of the committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on human rights, national minorities and international relations, the Human Rights Information Center correspondent reports.

Lohvynsky noted that the scale of displacement did not allow coping with the problem properly, “The current statistics – 1.4 million people – evidence that no country in the world could manage to do everything in a proper way with such amount of displaced people.”

He notes that Ukraine needs to find additional sources of financing to increase budgetary resources to assist displaced people. Another option apart from increasing taxes or money-saving is return of the stolen funds. Every displaced person, according to Heorhiy Lohvynsky, is an aggrieved person and he or she should be compensated moral and material damage.

“As known, the Prosecutor General’s Office investigates several criminal cases over annexation. It is necessary to strengthen the processes, where charges are brought against real organizers of human rights violations in Donbas. We understand that “DPR”, “LPR”, Crimea are not separate entities and that the Russian Federation backs them and hence bears full responsibility. Just as the European Court of Human Rights establishes responsibility of Russia for Transnistria, so Russia assumes full responsibility for Crimea,” Lohvynsky said.

He noted that the Russian assets were around the world and Russia as the aggressor state must compensate the damage. However, for that, the displaced persons must write applications that they bore losses and what was their amount.

According to the expert, the assets of Russia amount to over UAH 4 billion just in Ukraine.

“It is very strange, for example, that the property of the Ukrainian banks in Crimea was forfeited by the Deposit Insurance Agency of Russia, as the Russian banks are still working here and no issue is raised in relation to their property. In addition, if there is debt of the Russian Federation, we understand it is the money of our citizens,” he said.

Heorhiy Lohvynsky believes that this problem must be solved involving human rights defenders and lawyers, in particular, by setting up a special agency to return the assets. The bill on this has already been supported by the Verkhovna Rada in the first reading.