The Ukrainian Embassy in Moscow owes millions of rubles

The Moscow Arbitration Court ruled in favor of Moscow United Energy Company (PJSC MOEK) in a dispute with the Ukrainian Embassy in Russia. The court awarded the energy company more than 5.5 million rubles, or nearly 60,000 euros, for unpaid energy supplies, with the amount including debt, penalties, fines, and state fees, according to the Russian news agency Tass.

According to the ruling, the embassy must pay more than 3.4 million rubles for just one of the claims, with other claims exceeding two million. The case seems paradoxical, as the Ukrainian embassy building in Moscow has been empty since February 2022.

After the start of the war, Russia evacuated its diplomats from Ukraine, and Kyiv subsequently unilaterally severed diplomatic relations with Moscow.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry announced the evacuation of personnel at the time, and since then, the embassies on both sides have remained unoccupied.

(mja)