Ukrainian businessman sues Russia at ECHR; Moscow says it will not obey verdict

Russian President Vladimir Putin's press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, has announced that Russia is exiting the Council of Europe and will not obey the verdicts newly announced by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). The verdict that will not be implemented by Russia will include a future decision on a case filed by Ukrainian businessman Rinat Akhmetov as Azovstal steel plant’s owner, TASS reported. Peskov said that they have already moved out of the "corresponding documents" and "the answer is obvious."  

Rinat Akhmetov, founder and shareholder of System Capital Management (SCM) Group, announced filing a case against Russia at the European Court of Human Rights for "grievous violations of his property rights during Russia’s unprovoked aggression against Ukraine." In the press release, Rinat Akhmetov said that, as the owner of Azovstal and many other industrial facilities that have been "targeted" by Russian forces, he wants to make sure that Russia is "held accountable" for the destruction in Ukraine.

Rinat Akhmetov files case against Russia 

Akhmetov asserted that "evil cannot go unpunished" and added, "Russia’s crimes against Ukraine and our people are egregious, and those guilty of them must be held liable." Rinat Akhmetov said that he has filed a lawsuit against Russia for damages caused by them in Ukraine. He accused Russian forces of "looting" Ukraine's export commodities including grain and steel. "These barbaric actions must be stopped, and Russia must pay in full. I believe in justice, and I am fighting for it,” he said.

"I have lodged an application with the European Court of Human Rights for damages. This lawsuit is one of the first international legal steps against Russia to stop their ongoing crimes, destruction of the Ukrainian economy, and the plundering of Ukrainian assets,” Rinat Akhmetov said in a press release.

Notably, the battle of Mariupol between the troops of Russia and Ukraine started on February 25. The Ukrainian troops continued to defend the Azovstal steel plant until May. On May 20, Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson Igor Konashenkov claimed that Moscow had "completely liberated" the Azovstal Steel plant, as per the TASS report.  

Russia started process for exit from Council of Europe in March 

As per the TASS report, Russia began the procedure for leaving the Council of Europe on March 15. Russian President Vladimir Putin, on June 11, signed into law the bills on non-compliance with the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Russia, TASS reported, citing the corresponding documents published on the official portal of legal information.

The European Court of Human Rights verdict announced against Russia after March 15 will not be applicable. In addition, the compensation will be paid in rubles and in accounts in Russian banks. Furthermore, the Russian Prosecutor General's Office will be able to pay as per the ECHR decisions until 1 January 2023. 

(Image: AP)