But it’s not quite the end: 17,450 lawsuits against Russia are still pending in the court. They were all submitted by the September 16 deadline and therefore had to be examined by the court, it said. According to the convention, Russia is still contractually bound to implement the judgments of these remaining lawsuits. In early June, however, the Russian parliament passed laws according to which the Russian authorities do not have to follow the judgments of the ECtHR.
Renata Alt (FDP), member of the Bundestag and chair of the Committee on Human Rights and Humanitarian Aid, described Russia’s withdrawal from the convention as regrettable. “By further isolating this, Putin is ensuring that millions of Russians are no longer protected by the European Convention on Human Rights.”