The international delegation, headed by Ana Lucía Bueno, ICRC Public Health Coordinator, and Sujit Panda, Head of the Physical Rehabilitation…
On December 16, a diplomatic conference on compensation for Ukraine for damage caused by Russia’s full-scale aggression will take place in The Hague, the Netherlands.
Today, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy will pay an official visit to the Netherlands.
During the conference, a convention will be signed to establish a mechanism that will determine the distribution of reparations obtained from Russian funds among Ukrainian citizens and legal entities affected by Russian aggression.
Delegations from 52 states from Europe, North America, South America, and Asia, as well as Australia and an EU delegation, are expected to participate in the conference. At present, it is not yet known exactly how many countries will sign the document today. The convention will enter into force once it is ratified by 25 countries. Ratification is a necessary stage, as it will make the document legally binding.
The groundwork for the compensation mechanism was prepared by an organization established under the Council of Europe — the Register of Damage. This body has also been processing claims for material losses suffered by Ukrainians during the war.
Markiyan Klyuchkovskyi, who heads the Register of Damage, explained in an interview with European Pravda that today’s agreement provides for the creation of a new international organization — the “Claims Commission for Ukraine”. This organization will be established under the auspices of the Council of Europe. The Commission will examine claims on their merits and determine the amounts that Russia owes to each claimant.
It is planned that the first source of funding for the fund from which reparations will be paid will be a portion of frozen Russian assets.
It should be noted that, among others, the United States is a participant in the Register of Damage and took part in the negotiation process regarding the compensation commission.
The Register of Damage already contains 85,000 claims. Markiyan Klyuchkovskyi believes that, technically, the first decisions on payments could be adopted as early as the second half of 2027.
However, this depends on how quickly 25 ratifications of today’s agreement are obtained. If this happens, for example, in mid-2026, the commission could begin operating in 2027 and approve the first compensation amounts within six months.
As a reminder, the mandate of the international Register of Damage for Ukraine covers damage caused as a result of the aggression of the Russian Federation starting from February 24, 2022. Claims can be submitted free of charge via the Diia web portal.
Servicemen and servicewomen and their family members, as well as veterans affected by Russian aggression, may be claimants to the international Register of Damage for Ukraine. The Register accepts claims within approved categories. Currently, claims in 13 categories are open for submission to the Register.
Additional information, including frequently asked questions about the categories of claims currently open for submission, can be found via the link.
Overall, the Register will accept claims in more than 40 categories of damage. These include, in particular, loss of life, torture, sexual violence, bodily injuries, forced displacement and relocation, loss of property and income, damage to critical infrastructure and other state facilities, as well as damage to historical and cultural heritage and the environment.
