The court in the case of sanctions against Poroshenko announced a recess until March
On 30 January, the Administrative Cassation Court within the Supreme Court considered the case of the fifth president of Ukraine and leader of the European Solidarity party, Petro Poroshenko, regarding his appeal against sanctions imposed on him by a decision of the National Security and Defence Council. Following the hearing, the court announced a recess due to the end of working hours. The next hearing is scheduled for 6 March at 9:30 a.m.
This was reported by Suspilne News with reference to a correspondent from the courtroom.
The hearing was held in a small courtroom, which limited public access. Petro Poroshenko said he considered this a deliberate move. According to the journalist, more than a hundred people gathered outside the courthouse, with others remaining on the street.
Commenting on the proceedings, Poroshenko spoke of pressure and possible provocations. He stated that, in his opinion, the actions of the authorities contradict the principles of the rule of law, democracy and freedoms, which are the basic Copenhagen criteria for Ukraine's accession to the European Union. The politician also called on the authorities not to put pressure on the judges and to focus on helping the residents of the capital in difficult weather conditions.
During the meeting, Lyudmila Tretyakova, a representative of the President's Office, emphasised that the procedure for adopting the National Security and Defence Council's decision on sanctions was lawful. She rejected Poroshenko's defence team's claims of possible falsification of the presidential decree and stated that the vote in the NSDC was conducted in accordance with all legal requirements and was supported by at least two-thirds of the council members.
In addition, Tretyakova refuted allegations that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy allegedly did not sign the published version of the document. According to her, the technical amendments made concerned only the formatting of the appendices and did not change the essence of the decree after it was signed. She also noted that the defence's comments regarding delays in the registration of documents or the transfer of materials were not of fundamental importance for the consideration of the case.
The previous hearing in this case took place on 5 January. At that time, the court postponed the consideration of the claim due to the failure of the representative of the President's Office to appear as a defendant.
On 12 February 2025, the National Security and Defence Council imposed sanctions against Petro Poroshenko, as well as businessmen Ihor Kolomoyskyi, Kostyantyn Zhevago, Hennadiy Boholyubov and former MP from the banned Opposition Platform — For Life party Viktor Medvedchuk. The sanctions include, in particular, the freezing of assets, a ban on participation in the privatisation and lease of state property, an increase in the authorised capital of enterprises and the termination of certain agreements, including in the field of security and defence. The restrictions are imposed indefinitely.
On 28 February 2025, it became known that Poroshenko's lawyers had appealed to the Supreme Court to challenge these sanctions.
Petro Poroshenko, NSDC sanctions, Supreme Court, Administrative Court of Cassation, Office of the President, European Solidarity, court hearing, Ukraine.
