OREANDA-NEWSThe Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague refused the Russian Federation the requirement to reconsider the issues of jurisdiction and breach of obligations in the claim of Privatbank in the case of the loss of assets of the institution in the Crimea. This was reported on Friday in the press service of the bank.

"The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague in the case of the protection of investments against the Russian Federation refused the Russian Federation the requirement to view resolved issues of production jurisdiction and violated obligations", the statement said. This decision is an interim, the court proceeds to the next stage of the consideration of the claim.

Privatbank recalled that the arbitration began hearing on this case on April 13, 2015. The reason for filing a lawsuit in the bank was the violation by the Russian Federation of obligations regarding assets in Crimea, provided for by the Agreement between the countries on the promotion and mutual protection of investments. In September 2014, the State Council of Crimea decided to nationalize the property of Privatbank, which is located on the territory of the republic.

After the coup in Kiev in February 2014, the Crimean and Sevastopol authorities decided to hold a referendum on reunification with Russia. The vote, which took place on March 16 of the same year, was attended by over 80% of eligible voters. For reunification with the Russian Federation, 96.7 and 95.6% of residents of the Crimea and Sevastopol, respectively, voted.

On March 18, the President of Russia signed an agreement on the admission of the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol to the Russian Federation, and on March 21, the document was ratified by the Federal Assembly. Despite the convincing results of the referendum, Kiev refused to recognize Crimea as part of Russia.