Estonian parliament adopts law allowing use of Russian frozen assets

Estonian MPs on Wednesday passed an act that enables the use of Russian assets frozen under international sanctions to compensate Ukraine for war damages, reported from ERR.

Sixty-five members of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) voted in favor of passing the amendment – to the Act on Amendments to the International Sanctions Act and Amendments to Other Associated Acts (332 SE) – and 3 were against it.

The president must now promulgate the legislation for it to enter into force.

The act creates a national mechanism to ensure the financial liability of an aggressor state for the damage caused by the most serious violations of international law, the Riigikogu said.

It enables assets of individuals and companies that have "contributed to Russia's wrongful acts," which have been frozen under sanctions, as an advance payment for damages owed by Russia to Ukraine.

The Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs will decide on the use of the assets as an advance payment for compensation for damage in the course of administrative procedure.

Assets can be used when damage has been caused by a wrongful act and the damage has been proved and must be compensated for under international law.

Additionally, the foreign state that has sustained damage must have submitted a relevant claim to the foreign state that has caused the damage, and the state that has caused the damage has not met the claim within a reasonable period of time.

To launch proceedings on the use of assets in Estonia, a relevant request will have to be submitted to Estonia and the conditions for the use of the assets as an advance payment for compensation for damage and for assigning the right of claim to the owner of the assets will have to be agreed upon with the state that has submitted the request.

In addition, the link between the owner of the assets and the wrongful act must be sufficiently proven. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will also have to determine all the facts and ownership relations relating to the assets.

The owner of the assets will have the right to contest the decision on the use of the assets in administrative court.





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