MOSCOW, November 5. / TASS /. The Russian Prosecutor General's Office has welcomed the Dutch Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the judgement on Russia’s payment of $50 bln to former Yukos shareholders, the press service told TASS on Friday.
"The Russian Prosecutor General's Office welcomes the Dutch Supreme Court’s decision confirming the principles of the rule of law and the independence of justice," the statement reads.
The Prosecutor General's Office noted that "the former Russian functionaries, who illegally took over Yukos and withdrawn money from Russia evading taxes through offshore shell companies, committed procedural fraud when considering the claims in international arbitration at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague."
According to the General Prosecutor's Office, the Dutch Supreme Court upheld several Russia’s arguments regarding the illegal conclusions of the Hague Court of Appeal and returned the case for additional consideration to the Amsterdam Court of Appeal. Further proceedings on the Yukos case will approximately last until 2023. "Russia expects that the Amsterdam Court of Appeal will interpret the remaining controversial issues in line with international law and the purposes of the Energy Charter Treaty, taking effective steps to protect the rights and legitimate interests of Russian taxpayers <…>," the press service noted.
At the same time, Russia regrets that "the Dutch Supreme Court did not fully heed its position, which strongly justified the need for a complete annulment of arbitral awards already at this stage."
On November 5, the Dutch Supreme Court upheld Russia’s cassation appeal and overturned the decision ruled by the Hague Court of Appeal on February 18, 2020, which briefly reinstated the 2014 arbitration awards regarding the country’s payment of $50 bln to the former major shareholders of Yukos.