Finnish authorities seize Russian center over unpaid claims
Finnish enforcement authorities have seized a building in the center of Helsinki owned by Russia, which serves as a science and culture center. According to the newspaper "Helsingin Sanomat," and based on information from the national land register, the property takeover is connected to compensation claims by the Ukrainian company Naftohaz.
3:04 PM EDT, October 29, 2024
Last week, authorities seized a building spanning more than 32,000 square feet, marking Finland's first instance of such action. According to a Finnish newspaper, seizing Russian-owned property has until now been considered an "exceptional measure."
Naftohaz claims
Naftohaz, which owned infrastructure and resource stocks in Crimea annexed by Russia in 2014, obtained a ruling from the arbitration court in The Hague in April of last year.
The court ordered Russia to pay the Ukrainian company over 5 billion euros in compensation for lost assets. Since Russia has not paid the dues, Naftohaz is aiming to freeze Russian assets in various countries.
The Russian Science and Culture Center in Helsinki was established in the 1970s by the KGB's Department of Cultural Relations. The building, with a facade adorned with a mosaic depicting the sickle and hammer, housed a cinema hall and a library. After the collapse of the USSR, the center's mission was to ensure that "Every Finn has an opinion about Russians," wrote "HS" in a report from a few years ago.
