Belgium to Release Frozen Russian Assets in 14 Days After Notification – Lawyer

All Russian assets in Belgium including those of RIA Novosti and TASS news agencies, seized as part of the case involving former shareholders of Yukos energy company, will be released within 14 days after a formal notification of the court's decision, a lawyer representing Russia said Friday.

BRUSSELS (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, Andrei Kondakov, the director-general of the International Center for Legal Protection, told Sputnik that the court in Brussels ruled to release all Russian assets in Belgium.

"The attachments should be lifted within 14 days as of the notification of the decision," Niuscha Bassiri, a partner at the Belgian law firm Hanotiau & van den Berg, told reporters.

She noted that a formal notification of the decision had not been received yet.

"This is a [court] decision now [made for] the fourth time in Belgium regarding the Yukos matter … That’s why I don’t think that there is a real risk that the YUL [Yukos Universal Limited] would go on to appeal," Bassiri said.

She added that there was no real threat to Russia’s assets in this case.

In July 2014, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague ordered Russia to pay former Yukos shareholders $50 billion. Moscow appealed the decision, but the shareholders turned to courts in several countries asking to freeze Russian state assets. The demand was granted in France and Belgium in 2015.

In April 2016, the Hague District Court overturned the verdict of the Permanent Court of Arbitration on the grounds that the case was out of the latter court's jurisdiction.

Rossiya Segodnya is an international media group offering alternative views on key events in Russia and elsewhere in a prompt, balanced, and unbiased manner. The agency operates a number of information resources, including RIA Novosti, Sputnik, RIA Real Estate, Prime, R-Sport, RIA Rating and InoSMI.