Callas warns that refusal to pay reparations to Ukraine will open the way for new Russian aggression
The European Union's representative for foreign and security policy, Kaja Kallas, said that Russia is seeking to avoid reparations for the damage caused to Ukraine, and that concessions in this regard would have dangerous consequences. She said this before signing the convention on the establishment of a compensation commission for Ukraine in The Hague.
According to Kallas, the newly created commission should determine the amount of reparations for Ukrainians affected by Russian aggression. It is not only about destroyed property. She emphasised that the biggest challenge is to assess the loss of human life, deportation of children, serious injuries, sexual violence and torture, which change people's lives forever.
The head of European diplomacy acknowledged that the commission faces serious challenges, including the issue of funding sources. Frozen Russian assets remain one of the options, but they are not enough to fully cover the damage. According to various estimates, Ukraine's losses are already measured in hundreds of billions of euros.
Kallas rejected comparisons with historical examples when the aggressor voluntarily paid reparations. She reminded that Russia has never compensated for the damage it has caused and will not do so without coercion from the international community.
At the same time, she warned that Moscow is already trying to exclude the topic of reparations and accountability from possible peace agreements. According to Kallas, this is why the world must preserve and complete the mechanisms of justice.
According to her, if the international community does not stand up for the victims of war and allows them to avoid responsibility, it will create conditions for new acts of aggression in the future.
