Austrian court approves sale of Russian assets as part of compensation for Crimea annexation

The Ukrainian state-owned gas company Naftogaz has secured compensation for losses following the Russian annexation of Crimea, reports the Austrian newspaper Der Standard. An auction will be held in Austria for the sale of 20 Russian real estate objects worth approximately €120 million.

The sale of the property will take place as part of the enforcement of an arbitral award against Russia totaling over $5 billion. In 2023, an international arbitration tribunal in The Hague ordered Russia to pay that amount in order to compensate Naftogaz for losses and lost assets resulting from Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea. Naftogaz stated that the court’s decision may be enforced in a compulsory manner: if the Russian Federation refuses to comply voluntarily, Naftogaz, in accordance with the 1958 New York Convention, has the right to initiate the process of compulsory enforcement in countries where Russian assets are located.