It is completely logical that the one who causes damage to the property and lives of other people should subsequently take responsibility and pay for their restoration. We are currently at the stage of developing the legal justification for how this can be implemented through the established commission, which the EU voted to officially join.
This commission will have the authority to assess the signals of damage, which already exceed 80 thousand, with their total value estimated at tens of billions of euros or dollars. The Commission is tasked with turning these assessments into an international legal obligation, which should be covered by the funds of the Russian Federation.
This was stated by the head of the Bulgarian delegation in the EPP group and member of the Presidency of the European Parliament Andrey Kovachev in the program "Metronome" with host Tsonya Sabcheva on Radio FOKUS in connection with the adopted resolution, which categorically condemns the repeated Russian strikes on civilian targets in Ukraine.
The MEPs insist that Russia and its allies bear responsibility for civilian casualties and express support for the establishment of a special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine.
"The European Parliament voted for the European Union to become part of this commission. The next steps include its establishment together with other participating states. It will be based in The Hague. The documentation collected so far by the Ukrainian side on the damage caused will be transferred to the commission. Lawyers will begin work on developing criteria for recognizing damage and assessing it. Experts will also be engaged to carry out these assessments. The issue of financing the commission is yet to be resolved," Kovachev added.
Initially, it will be financed by the participating countries, but in the long term, the funds should be provided through mobilized assets of the Russian Federation, corresponding to the damage caused to Ukraine's infrastructure.
In connection with the loan of 90 billion euros and the 21st package of restrictions, Kovachev indicated that 45 billion euros of the total package will be provided by the end of June.
Regarding the new package of sanctions, he noted that an important political question remains whether they are functioning effectively. However, in his opinion, it is clear that the Russian economy is in an extremely difficult state - a fact also recognized by the Russian Central Bank. There are serious macro- and microeconomic restrictions that also affect Russian citizens.
According to him, the sanctions have a significant effect on the ability of the Russian economy to produce military equipment and sustain its military operations.