Russia denounced Wednesday a "
dangerous precedent
" and announced the opening of an investigation to estimate its damage after the decision of the Dutch justice to return to Ukraine archaeological treasures of Crimea disputed between Moscow and Kiev. "
This is a very dangerous precedent which undermines trust between museum communities in different countries and calls into question the prospects for cooperation between museums in Russia and the Netherlands,
" the spokesperson for the
Netherlands
said in a statement. Russian diplomacy, Maria Zakharova. "
We hoped until the last moment that the cultural field, at least, would stay out of politics,
" she added, denouncing a "
regrettable
"
decision
and "
politically motivated
”.
Read also Camouflet for Moscow: Dutch justice orders the return to Ukraine of archaeological treasures from Crimea
The Russian Investigative Committee, in charge of the main criminal cases, for its part announced in a press release the opening of an investigation to make "
an appropriate assessment of the violation of Russia's interests
" in this case which has lasted since 2014. This procedure will be under the responsibility of its branch in Crimea and will aim to establish, in collaboration with Russian diplomacy, the circumstances "
of the non-return
" of this archaeological treasure.
The Russian Ministry of Culture denounced him a violation of international law.
The Amsterdam Court of Appeal on Tuesday ordered the return to Ukraine of a priceless collection of archaeological objects, loaned by Crimea to a museum in Amsterdam before the annexation of this peninsula by Moscow and retained from in the Netherlands. This rich collection, made up of nearly 2,000 objects dating from the second century AD until the early Middle Ages, had been temporarily transferred to the Allard Pierson museum by four Crimean museums shortly before the annexation of March 2014 by Russia. The four Crimean museums then took legal action to force the Allard Pierson Museum to return the collection.
In 2016, a Dutch court ruled that these objects should be returned to Ukraine, stressing that Crimea was not considered an autonomous state. Crimean museums appealed against this decision. The case could now be taken to the Supreme Court of the Netherlands.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed a "
victory
" on
Tuesday
and assured that his country "will
recover Crimea
" as well.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warned him on Wednesday that such statements could have "
negative consequences
".
The ruler of the Crimea, Sergei Aksionov, assured that the Russian authorities will do “
everything possible to bring the collection home
”.
Tuesday, he denounced a decision "
scandalous, unfair and illegal
" and questioned the "
partiality of European courts
".