Council of Europe Launches International Register of Damage for Ukraine to Provide Compensation and Support Post-War Regeneration

Kyiv, 14 November 2024 – The Council of Europe has created the International Register of Damage for Ukraine (RD4U), which will provide the mechanisms for registering the value of losses and delivering compensation, as well as creating tools for uniting the world community in the restoration of Ukraine. The Register of Damage Caused by the Aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine – its full name –  was formally launched at the recent meeting of the Association of Cities of Ukraine (AUC), which works for the development of de-occupied and temporarily occupied communities,

There are already 10,000 applications in the Register, beginning to raise the issue of compensation to the international level.

Claudia Luciani, the Council of Europe’s Director of the Congress of the local and regional authorities, drew attention to the importance of combating impunity and the importance of bringing justice. She noted that the creation of RD4U will provide international compensatory mechanisms and help world community support the post-war regeneration of Ukraine.

RD4U is the first step to implement a compensation mechanism that will provide evidence for courts and international tribunals. The Register currently has a 45 categories including forced displacement, violation of personal integrity, loss of access to medical care or education, damage, destruction or loss of property, loss of historical, cultural and religious heritage, losses of business and many more.

Olena Shuliak,Head of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on organization of state authorities, local-self government, regional development and urban planning, and people’s deputy of Ukraine, said, “The International Register of Damage for Ukraine is the foundation for international assistance and the use of frozen russian assets for rebuilding Ukraine. However, its importance goes beyond financial issues. It also protects the truth for future generations. It will help restore the rights of every Ukrainian who has suffered from this war. Without it, we run the risk of losing the possibility of compensation and allowing the world to forget these large-scale tragedies. Justice is not just about compensation. It is the memory that won’t allow repetition of these horrendous crimes.”

SCM, owned by businessman Rinat Akhmetov, has already launched legal actions against russia.

Natalia Yemchenko, SCM’s Chief Corporate Affairs Officer and member of supervisory board of NGO Mariupol.Reborn, said, “SCM and the Metinvest Group were the first to begin to sue russia. We have already won a case regarding our property in Crimea and have a case against russia in the European Court of Human Rights regarding our assets in Mariupol, claiming losses of $20 billion. As a big business, we can use these existing mechanisms and we are determined evil will be punished. But we also need a new mechanism that communities of all sizes across Ukraine can use, and RD4U is the change we need.”

RD4U was the main topic of the recent AUC meeting in Kyiv, attended by deputies, officials, representatives of local self-government and international partners. The meeting also covered the challenges faced by the Ukrainian education system, and preservation of reverse grants and 64% of personal income tax in community budgets.

Oleksandr Slobozhan, executive director of AUC, said, “The Association of Cities of Ukraine has addressed the appeals of village, settlement and city mayors to the President of Ukraine and, together with communities of all Ukraine, is doing everything it can to preserve grants and taxes in local budgets. We have every reason to hope that, thanks to our joint efforts, these issues will be supported by the Parliament of Ukraine. It is important because it will help communities to respond effectively to military challenges, as well as having the resources to support displaced persons.”

Vadym Boichenko, head of the AUC section for the development of de-occupied and temporarily occupied communities, and mayor of Mariupol, noted that an important task for communities is the creation of decent housing for displaced people.

Vadym Boychenko said, “Many people have nowhere to live and cannot go the conditions they had before the start of a full-scale invasion. Therefore, a common task for the state and local authorities is to create quality and affordable social housing, which will save people in Ukraine and will become the basis for their return from abroad.”