SIMFEROPOL, October 26. / TASS /. The Scythian gold, which was taken out from Crimea and handed over to Ukraine, belongs to the Russian region’s people, Chairman of the State Council of Crimea Vladimir Konstantinov told TASS on Tuesday, castigating the Amsterdam court’s decision as illegal.
"This is an outrageous act, completely illegal, and has nothing to do with law or justice. These are our artifacts, they belong to the people of Crimea. And no one else has the right to claim them. That Ukraine, to which Crimea belonged, no longer exists," the state council’s head noted.
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky praised the Amsterdam court’s decision to hand over the Scythian gold to his state as a fair one. The country’s leader emphasized that after the gold was returned, Ukraine also sought to take back Crimea. "It was a long-awaited victory at trial. The Scythian gold will return to Ukraine. I am grateful to the Amsterdam court for such a fair decision," Zelensky wrote on his Twitter page.
The Amsterdam Court of Appeal has ruled that the Scythian Gold collection should be handed over to Ukraine, Presiding Judge Pauline Hofmeijer-Rutten announced on Tuesday. According to her, the artifacts in question are "part of the cultural heritage of the Ukrainian State" and should be handed over to Ukraine.
The Scythian Gold collection of over 2,000 items was on view at the Allard Pierson Museum of the University of Amsterdam between February and August 2014. After the peninsula reunited with Russia in March 2014, uncertainty over the collection arose as both Russia and Ukraine claimed the exhibits. In this regard, the University of Amsterdam suspended the collection’s handover until either the dispute is legally resolved or the parties come to terms.