CoE summit creates register of damage for Ukraine
Leaders of Council of Europe countries on Wednesday created the register of damage caused by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, Ukraine’s government said in a statement.
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Marija Pejčinović Burić, secretary general of the Council of Europe, Katrín Jakobsdóttir, prime minister of Iceland, Mark Rutte, prime minister of the Netherlands, and Denys Shmyhal, prime minister of Ukraine, signed the political declaration of accession to an Enlarged Partial Agreement.
"The Register is an important milestone on the road to justice and reparations for Ukraine and the Ukrainians who have suffered so much from this war," Mr Shmyhal was quoted as saying.
"Now we need to ensure that the Register becomes operational soon, so that victims of Russian aggression could submit their claims."
40 out of 46 Council of Europe countries and the European Union have joined or indicated their intention to join the Register, the Council of Europe said in a statement. Canada, Japan and the United States have joined the agreement as well.
The list does not include Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Serbia, and Turkiye.
"The list of 'non-signatories' is not surprising at all," Ukraine’s deputy justice minister Iryna Mudra posted on Facebook, adding that "the pool of Putin's 'friends' is still the same."
The Register of Damage is a platform for intergovernmental cooperation within the Council of Europe. It will be a legal entity under Dutch law and will receive and process information on damage claims and evidence.
The Register is the first component of the future International Compensation Mechanism, which will be established by a separate international treaty in cooperation with Ukraine. Next, a Claims Commission and a Compensation Fund will need to be established.
Ukraine's reconstruction needs will amount to at least USD 411 billion, according to World Bank estimates.
