MOSCOW: The ruling by the Supreme Court of the Netherlands to hand over the Scythian gold collection from Crimean museums to Ukraine will...
MOSCOW: The ruling by the Supreme Court of the Netherlands to hand over the Scythian gold collection from Crimean museums to Ukraine will entail a due response from Russia, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said.
The Supreme Court of the Netherlands said on Friday that it had upheld the verdict of the Amsterdam Appellate Court demanding that the Scythian gold collection be transferred to Ukraine.
"This did not come as a surprise to us. Any other decision could hardly be expected, given the Netherlands’ unconditional support for any of Ukraine’s requests, even the most unscrupulous ones. Notably, the verdict was pronounced three months before the officially expected date. One can only make guesses about reasons behind this haste," Zakharova said on Friday.
"The verdict of the Supreme Court of the Netherlands sets another dangerous precedent that undermines trust within the museum community and, certainly, will not be left without an adequate response on our part," the diplomat added.
"The Scythian gold is a part of Crimea’s cultural heritage and no decisions made by biased judges can cancel this indisputable fact. Historical justice will prevail," the spokeswoman said.
The Scythian Gold is a collection of more than 2,000 items that were put on display at an exhibition at the Allard Pierson Museum of the University of Amsterdam in February 2014 when Crimea was still part of Ukraine. Uncertainty over the collection's future emerged when Crimea reunited with Russia in March 2014. Crimea’s museums and Ukraine both laid claim to the collection. The University of Amsterdam, which oversees the Allard Pierson Museum's activities, put the handover procedure on hold until either the dispute was legally resolved or the parties came to terms.
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