Berlin should not “ignore international law” unless it wants other countries to follow suit, Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin says
The proposed confiscation of Russian funds and property by Germany and their subsequent transfer to Ukraine may create a dangerous precedent in international law, Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the State Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament, has claimed.
In a post on Thursday to his official Telegram channel, Volodin wrote that the measure runs counter to international law, and may lead other countries to take similar actions.
“They plan to seize Russian assets to rebuild Ukraine… This will start a process where all states ignore international law and take what they see fit at their own discretion,” Volodin warned, adding that Germany’s leadership “should remember from their own country’s history how attempts to encroach on someone else’s property ended.”
Volodin stressed that Russia will have the right to take similar steps against Germany if Russian funds are seized.
“We now live in a different reality: not only according to the UN Charter, but also based on precedents. There are no unilateral decisions, the rules must be the same for everyone. The same goes for the seizure of money and property. Once such a decision is made, we have the right to take similar actions against the assets of Germany and other states,” the official said.
The idea of seizing frozen Russian assets to help rebuild Ukraine has been discussed within the EU for some time. According to a recent report by Bloomberg, Berlin has stepped up negotiations on the controversial step and is mulling the option of selectively confiscating assets, only taking the funds of Russians whose involvement in the Ukraine operation has been proven.
Germany ‘open’ to seizing frozen Russian assets – Bloomberg
MORE: Germany ‘open’ to seizing frozen Russian assets – Bloomberg
However, opinions reportedly differ within the German government on whether the measure should be introduced and to what extent. The selective approach, for instance, would be difficult to implement, as it may take years for each case to go through the courts, analysts warn.
Amid the sanctions that followed the start of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine last February, Western governments froze some €300 billion ($311 billion) in reserves belonging to the Russian central bank, along with billions in assets owned by sanctioned Russian businessmen.
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While trafficking young girls, he was also part of an effort to export military-grade systems to governments around the world
Rachel Marsden
By Rachel Marsden, a columnist, political strategist, and host of independently produced talk-shows in French and English.
rachelmarsden.com
When I first moved to New York, I walked into my new dentist’s office and genuinely wondered whether I’d accidentally wandered into a Victoria’s Secret audition.
The waiting room was full of stunning young women. Eventually I learned the dentist shared space with a modeling agency. You couldn’t tell who was getting veneers and who was getting a contract until you were halfway down the hallway.
Jeffrey Epstein’s life operated on the same architectural principle: two businesses shoved into one building, one involving underaged girls, the other involving powerful political figures, including some tied to the Israeli government. Not exactly whitening trays and catwalks, but equally disorienting.
...
The bloc wants to use the funds to back a “reparation loan” to Ukraine
US officials want the EU to return Russia’s frozen assets once it signs a peace deal with Ukraine, contradicting the bloc's plans to use them to finance Kiev, Politico reported on Tuesday, citing diplomats.
EU leaders want to issue a €140 billion ($160 billion) “reparations loan” to Kiev using frozen Russian funds as collateral, despite opposition from bloc member Belgium, which has repeatedly warned that the scheme carries financial and legal risks.
According to the outlet, American officials told the EU’s sanctions envoy, David O’Sullivan, during a visit to Washington this summer that they planned to return Russia’s frozen assets after a peace treaty is concluded.
Under the purported US 28-point peace plan leaked to media in November, $100 billion in frozen Russian assets would be invested in American-led “efforts to rebuild.....more below
Paris has authorized the use of private military companies to provide assistance to third countries, the SVR noted
France is still exploring ways to directly involve itself in the Ukraine conflict, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has said, citing a new government decree that authorizes the use of private military companies to assist foreign states engaged in armed conflict.
The agency claimed there is little ambiguity about which country France has in mind, given its sustained backing of Kiev. It argued that Ukraine’s mobile air-defense units and limited Western aircraft cannot fully counter Russian strikes, and that operating French-made Mirage fighter jets and other advanced systems requires expertise Ukraine does not possess.
The SVR stressed that the presence of French private military companies in Ukraine under the guise of “reference operators” would be regarded by Moscow as direct engagement by Paris in hostilities. It has also warned that such personnel ...
