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Crimea’s claim against Ukraine over energy blockade reaches around $38.5 bln

Chairman of the Supreme Council of Crimea Vladimir Konstantinov stated that social activists want to file the case in the near future

SIMFEROPOL, March 11. /TASS/. The amount claimed by Crimean citizens for the energy blockade against Ukraine will reach about 3.5 trillion rubles ($38.5 bln), according to Chairman of the Supreme Council of Crimea Vladimir Konstantinov.

"The Civic Chamber of the Republic of Crimea filed a lawsuit in the region's Supreme Court, requesting that it recognize the right of Russian citizens living in Crimea to compensation for moral harm caused by restrictions on the right to life and health as a result of the peninsula's energy blockade. If the court upholds the claims, more than 3 trillion 448 billion rubles will be recovered from the illegal entity ‘Ukraine’ in behalf of the Crimeans," Konstantinov wrote in his Telegram channel.

Konstantinov stated that social activists want to file the case in the near future, while republic’s citizens will not be required to prove the existence of the blockade, as it will be acknowledged by the court as commonly known.

On March 4, the Republic of Crimea's officials filed a claim with the Crimean Arbitration Court against the energy blockade. Crimea's claims against Ukraine in this lawsuit total more than 3.15 trillion rubles ($34.68 bln). The defendants are Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers, the Ministry of Energy, and Ukrenergo, the country's national energy business. According to Konstantinov, third parties in the process would include the Crimean ministries of fuel and energy, healthcare, the Ministry of Emergency Situations, and the Krymenergo.

In May 2014, Ukraine unilaterally cut off water from the Kherson Region, supplied through the North Crimean Canal, which met up to 90% of the peninsula's demand. Until May 2016, a state of emergency remained in force across the peninsula, while rolling shutdowns were used for consumers.