Ukraine’s Justice Ministry says resolution on reparations for Ukraine allows compensation mechanism to work
Countries now have ‘legally grounded decision’ to take action for compensating Ukraine (Photo:Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)
The resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly on the payment of reparations by Russia for the damage it has caused to Ukraine will allow the compensation mechanism to start working, Ukraine’s Ministry of Justice has said.
Deputy Minister of Justice Iryna Mudra noted that after the adoption of the document, the countries in which Russian assets have been arrested will have the legal grounds to move from discussions to action, kick-starting the work of the international compensation mechanism.
"Ukraine will propose that they conclude an international treaty on bringing Russia to justice and (Russia paying) compensation for damage caused by (its) aggression," she said.
At the same time, Kremlin spokesman of Dmitry Peskov said in an interview with Radio Mayak that the organizers of the process "are trying to complete the robbery of Russian reserves.”
He claimed that Russian assets had been blocked illegally, and that Moscow does not consider this decision legally binding.
"This is the formalization of this robbery using the UN platform. This decision is not legally binding, so we will treat it that way," he said.
The day before, the UN General Assembly adopted a draft resolution on the payment of compensation by Russia to Ukraine for damage caused by its war of aggression. The document was supported by 94 countries, 14 voted against, and 73 abstained.
The resolution recognizes the need to establish an international mechanism for paying compensation to Ukraine for damage resulting from Russia's illegal actions.
It recommends that the member states of the United Nations, in cooperation with Ukraine, create an international registry to document claims and information on damage caused to Ukrainians by Russia's actions.
The draft resolution "Furtherance of remedy and reparation for aggression against Ukraine" was devised by the Ukrainian working group and proposed by Kyiv.
It provides for the recognition by UN states of the need to create a compensation mechanism.
The resolution is co-authored by dozens of partner countries of Ukraine. However, the document is only of an advisory nature.
In September, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that the government wants to receive about $300-500 billion in Russian assets frozen in different countries and use the funds to restore Ukraine.
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