European Court of Human Rights Delivers Verdict on Russia’s Conduct in Crimea

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has issued its final decision on Ukraine’s lawsuit against Russia in the “Crimean case.” The Grand Chamber of the Court delivered its judgment today, June 25, on the case brought to its attention in 2020, as reported by a correspondent in Strasbourg, France.

The Court found that Russia systematically violated human rights in the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol since 2014. These violations include breaches of several articles of the European Convention on Human Rights: the right to life, prohibition of torture, right to liberty and security, right to a fair trial, right to respect for private and family life, freedom of thought, conscience and religion, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and association, prohibition of discrimination, among others.

The proceedings in the “Ukraine v. Russia” case in Strasbourg were conducted without Russian representatives. In March 2022, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, the overseeing body of the ECHR, decided to suspend Russia’s membership.

In December 2023, Ukraine provided the ECHR with evidence of systematic administrative practices violating human rights by Russia in the temporarily occupied Crimea. Previous stages of the court proceedings established February 27, 2014, as the date when the Russian Federation took control of the Crimean Peninsula, holding Russia accountable for subsequent violations there.

Earlier reports indicated that the “Ukraine v. Russia (Crimea)” case originated from two lawsuits filed on March 13, 2014, and August 26, 2015, concerning events in Crimea and eastern Ukraine. On June 11, 2018, these two lawsuits were merged into the current unified case “Ukraine v. Russia (Crimea).”