Russia is confiscating the property of Ukrainians in the occupied territories, and such a policy is aimed not just at the expropriation of property, but at the purposeful destruction of the Ukrainian people, Russification, and the theft of Ukrainian territories. This was stated by Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi, noting that the looted property will have to be returned, as quoted by the ministry's press service and reported by UNN.
Details
As Tykhyi stated, according to the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the Russian authorities continue to flagrantly violate the norms of international humanitarian law, purposefully changing the demographics of the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine and settling them with natives of the Russian Federation and citizens of foreign states, in particular from the regions of Central Asia, Africa, and the Caucasus.
Russian lawlessness deprives Ukrainians of their homes twice: first by forcing them to leave the occupied territories, and later by taking away the housing that remains under occupation. Russia began this criminal policy back in 2014 and is now scaling up the robbery within the framework of state programs and legislative initiatives. We are grateful to human rights defenders who draw the world's attention to Russia's crimes in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. In particular, a study conducted by the human rights organization Human Rights Watch exposes the details of the fictitious procedures introduced by the Russian occupation authorities for recognizing property as "ownerless" for the purpose of subsequent confiscation. The HRW report documents in detail the illegal campaign for the "re-registration" of real estate, which is conditioned by a series of unlawful requirements that are impossible for the legitimate owners to fulfill
He emphasized that the important evidence collected by Human Rights Watch human rights defenders as part of this project will be used by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other state institutions to protect the rights of Ukrainian citizens in national and international jurisdictions and to bring those responsible for the illegal expropriation of property to justice.
Moscow is effectively repeating the same crimes as in the previous century, when people were settled in the housing of repressed "enemies of the people." The scale of the robbery during the Russian aggression against Ukraine is unprecedented. Ukraine will continue to use every national and international legal instrument to draw the world's attention and return the stolen property. All facts of robbery are subject to thorough documentation, will entail the inevitable prosecution of the perpetrators, and the return of property to its rightful owners. We believe that such a policy by Russia is aimed not just at the expropriation of property, but at the purposeful destruction of the Ukrainian people, Russification, and the theft of Ukrainian territories. We emphasize once again that the illegal expropriation by Russia and its occupation administrations of state, communal, and private property in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine is null and void, provides no legal grounds for ownership of property to anyone except the rightful owners, and will be subject to cancellation in the future. We remind Russia and every Russian thief: the looted property will have to be returned
Addendum
The organization Human Rights Watch published an investigation detailing how the Russian authorities are illegally confiscating civilian property belonging to Ukrainians in the occupied territories.
The occupation administration has introduced a procedure that allows private property to be recognized as "ownerless" (the term "abandoned" is also used) and transferred to municipal ownership. At the same time, Ukrainian owners are forced to acquire Russian citizenship if they want to confirm their ownership rights or appeal the confiscation. As a result of the seizure of property, millions of internally displaced persons from Ukraine and people still living in the territories occupied since 2022 who refuse to comply with Russian laws are effectively left without housing, income, and means of subsistence. In addition to the administrative barriers and movement restrictions introduced by Russia, these measures prevent refugees and internally displaced persons from returning home in safe and dignified conditions.
Recall
A Russian government commission approved an initiative by the Ministry of Construction that allows "abandoned property" to be recognized as state property in the occupied regions of Ukraine. This applies to apartments, houses, and premises whose owners are allegedly impossible to identify, and now such objects will be transferred to occupation administrations or new residents.