In the US allowed to judge the Russian Sberbank in the case of MH17

The court in the United States suggested that the American family who died on board Malaysia Airlines in the sky over the Donbass in 2014 could sue the Russian Bank “Sberbank”. About it UNN reports with reference to DW.

Details

Judge Joseph Bianko in the United States announced a decision that the Sberbank of the Russian Federation financed the so -called “DNR” fighters and, therefore, can be considered as a terrorists, so his status of the State Bank of Russia does not give him the right to sovereign immunity. He announced this decision by allowing the judicial persecution of the Russian Family of the American who died in the MH17 flight disaster in Donbass in 2014.

In April 2019, a claim to Sberbank was filed with Quinn Chansman, who was 18 years old at the time of death. He flew MH17 flight Malaysian Airlines from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. The family accused the bank of using the US banking system to transfer donations to the so -called “DNR”.

Sberbank appealed this lawsuit, claiming that he is a state organization and cannot be prosecuted in other countries. But three judges of the 2nd District Court of Appeal of Manmetten decided that in this case the principle of sovereign immunity to Sberbank is not extended.

As Joseph Bianko explained in the decision, the money transfers made by Sberbank were “typical commercial activity”, so it does not fall under the protection of the law on the immunity of foreign states (FSIA). Thus, Sberbank carried out commercial transactions through the US banking system for the benefit of an organization that is considered terrorist in Ukraine and sanctions in the United States.

Less than a year after the Family Family Family – in early 2020 – the Russian Government for the money of the National Welfare Fund purchased a Sberbank Subcarbon A controlling stake at the Bank of Russia. Sberbank insisted in court that, being a state organization or agent, he was not awesome in other jurisdictions. Sberbank also pointed out that the US law on combating terrorism provides immunity, regardless of when the bank has been controlled by state and commercial activity does not give grounds for exceptions.

But Judge Bianko stated that FSIA fully regulates the issues of sovereign immunity in civil cases (which is the case “Chansmans against Sberbank”) and that his provisions were not abolished by anti -terrorist law. If you agree with the position of Sberbank, it would nullify the intention of the US Congress to give the civilian plaintiffs the widest possible legal basis for filing claims to organizations that provide financial support to foreigners involved in terrorist activity against the United States, Bianko said.

Recall

On July 17, 2014, in the sky above the Donbass, the rocket hit Boeing, heading the MH17 flight. None of 298 people on board survived. In November 2022, the Court in Hague condemned the citizens of the Russian Federation Igor Girkin, Sergiy Dubinsky, as well as a citizen of Ukraine Leonid Kharchenko – to a life imprisonment for their role in the catastrophe of the Malaysian Boeing 777.

The EU published a statement that called on the Russian Federation to take responsibility and cooperate in the administration of justice.