PACE calls for redirecting frozen Russian state assets to pay Ukraine ECHR compensation
On 30 September, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe passed a resolution and recommendations urging member and observer states to channel Russian state assets held under their jurisdiction into a Council of Europe mechanism that would compensate Ukraine for European Court of Human Rights rulings. PACE characterises the redirection of Russian assets as a lawful countermeasure under international law.
Key points
- PACE adopted the resolution and recommendations on 30 September.
- The Assembly calls on member and observer states to take legal and practical steps to direct Russian state assets under their jurisdiction into a payment mechanism.
- PACE characterises the redirection of Russian state assets as a lawful countermeasure under international law.
- The ECHR has established Russia's responsibility for grave human rights violations in two Ukraine–Russia interstate cases but has not yet quantified the compensation owed.
- PACE proposes creating, under the Council of Europe, a mechanism to receive Russian state assets earmarked for Ukraine; payments would count as compensation Russia owes Ukraine.
- PACE also urges states to enforce ECHR compensation decisions through national legal procedures while Russia refuses to pay.
- Roughly €260 billion in Russian Central Bank assets have been frozen since the full-scale invasion, with about €210 billion held in the EU; potential payments to Ukraine could reach tens or hundreds of billions of euros.
Why it matters
PACE is building a formal legal pathway to use frozen Russian state assets for compensation tied to ECHR judgments, with potential payouts estimated at tens or hundreds of billions of euros. The move also sets a principled position — that redirecting Russian assets is a lawful countermeasure under international law — that other reparations discussions can build on.
What happened
On 30 September, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted a resolution and recommendations calling on member and observer states to take legal and practical steps to direct Russian state assets under their jurisdiction into a Council of Europe mechanism for Ukraine. PACE frames the redirection as a lawful countermeasure under international law. The Assembly proposes a dedicated mechanism under the Council of Europe that would receive the earmarked Russian state assets; payments to Ukraine would count against the compensation Russia owes it. The mechanism could operate on its own or be incorporated into a broader future compensation fund. PACE also urged countries to enforce ECHR compensation decisions through national legal procedures while Russia continues to refuse payment. The ECHR has already found Russia responsible for grave human rights violations in two interstate cases brought by Ukraine, though it has not yet set the size of the compensation. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, roughly €260 billion in Russian Central Bank assets have been frozen, about €210 billion of which are held in the EU; potential payments to Ukraine could reach tens or hundreds of billions of euros.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
The two supplied Ukrainian sources frame the PACE action as a concrete step toward channelling billions in Russian state assets into reparations for Ukraine. They stress the scale of potential payments — tens or hundreds of billions of euros — and underline Russia's legal obligation to comply with ECHR rulings.
Background
Russia's full-scale invasion triggered the freezing of roughly €260 billion in Russian Central Bank assets, of which about €210 billion are held in the EU. The ECHR has ruled on Russia's responsibility in two Ukraine–Russia interstate cases but has not yet quantified the compensation owed. Russia has refused to pay ECHR judgments, which is why PACE is urging states to enforce payment through national legal procedures and a dedicated Council of Europe mechanism.