MOSCOW: Russia will not comply with a European court ruling ordering it to pay Georgia almost $300 million for violations it has allegedly committed since their 2008 war, the Kremlin said Wednesday.
Russia invaded Georgia in 2008 after Tbilisi launched a surprise offensive against pro-Moscow separatist forces that it said were shelling Georgian villages.
Since then, it has occupied areas of northern and western Georgia comprising almost one-fifth of the country and installed puppet governments that have prevented the return of ethnic Georgian citizens, according to Tbilisi.
It has also blocked the teaching of Georgian in schools, Georgia says.
On Tuesday, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) upheld Georgia’s complaints, ordering Moscow to pay just over 253 million euros ($292 million) in compensation.
“We will not comply with the ruling,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Moscow quit the Council of Europe, of which the ECHR is part, following its 2022 offensive on Ukraine but the court says it remains liable for violations committed before then.
Moscow has repeatedly ignored ECHR rulings, including while it was still a member of the Council of Europe.
Georgia formally cut diplomatic relations with Russia in the wake of their 2008 war, but has taken informal steps to improve ties in recent years — a process that Georgia’s opposition has heavily criticized.
When asked on Wednesday whether the non-payment of the fine would affect the diplomatic thaw, Peskov said it was a “separate matter.”
Moscow recognizes the breakaway Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent, while most of the world recognizes them as Georgian territory.