“Only defend the principle of the rule of law if we uphold it ourselves”

Berlin Federal Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann (FDP) is open to using frozen Russian currency reserves for the reconstruction of Ukraine: “It would be an unusual step. But the Russian state violates fundamental rules of international law and also accepts massive damage to life and limb outside Ukraine.” It is right that “the international community is considering whether and how the aggressor state can be involved, at least this damage to reduce”.

The minister is more critical of such a step in the case of oligarch assets, as now proposed by the EU Commission: “Such confiscation would have to comply with the provisions of the Basic Law and European law,” Buschmann told the Handelsblatt.

Expropriations would have to be compensated according to the Basic Law, the European Convention on Human Rights and the European Charter of Fundamental Rights. That’s why little would be gained if the EU states took someone’s ship away, but had to compensate for the value: “We will therefore take a close look at the proposals that the EU Commission has now published,” announced the FDP politician.