A preliminary hearing of the Russian central bank's lawsuit against the Belgium-based Euroclear is scheduled for January 16 next year as Russia moves to seek damages from European banks for illegally freezing and using its assets.
In a statement released by its press service on Thursday, the Bank of Russia said it will claim damages from European banks in a Russian arbitration court for the illegal blocking and use of its assets.
On Monday, the bank filed a lawsuit against Euroclear, which holds a large amount of frozen Russian assets, seeking over 18 trillion rubles (about 230 billion U.S. dollars) in damages.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said that any disposal of Russian sovereign assets without the consent of the Russian Federation—whether through indefinite freezing, confiscation, or attempts to disguise the de facto confiscation as some form of so-called "compensation loan"—is absolutely illegal and is a serious violation of international law.
The European Commission published a plan on Dec 3 to use frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine, reducing the funding amount from up to 186 billion U.S. dollars to around 105 billion dollars.
Preliminary hearing of Russian central bank's lawsuit against Euroclear scheduled for Jan 16
Preliminary hearing of Russian central bank's lawsuit against Euroclear scheduled for Jan 16
Hong Kong's first astronaut lifted off into space on Sunday, sparking a wave of enthusiasm for space exploration in the special administrative region, while inspiring a new generation to look to the stars.
The Shenzhou-23 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China at 23:08 (Beijing Time) on Sunday. The crew members include Lai Ka-ying, the first astronaut and payload specialist from Hong Kong to join a national space mission, whose achievements have motivated many Hong Kong residents.
"I feel so happy and thrilled. This is the first time a Hong Kong astronaut has gone to space, and to see a true Hong Konger, who is also a mother of three, just really touches my heart," said Chow, a local resident.
The successful spaceflight of Lai has especially captivated the younger generation to dream bigger about the future.
"I want to be an astronaut, because I want to discover more things about space," said a young student surnamed Chow.
"I have seen things related to spaceflights of astronauts. I hope when I grow up, I could receive training and go to space myself," said another student surnamed Koo.
To meet public expectations, the Hong Kong Space Museum has updated its space-themed exhibition with the latest development of the Shenzhou-23 mission, extending the display until July 6. Parents are seizing the moment to enrich their children's knowledge.
"At his age, I want him to be exposed to a wide range of information. With all the recent astronaut news, I brought him here specially to see for himself. We will also check out a film about space knowledge at the planetarium. I hope he can get more out of this from an early age," said Cheung, a father.
"We just watched the Shenzhou-23 launch at home with my son last night, and decided to take him to the Space Museum," a mother surnamed Chun shared.
"I saw on TV that so many people were cheering for the launch. When the rocket was launched, fire burst out from its body. I was really happy they succeeded," said Chun's son.
Hong Kong's first astronaut ignites citywide enthusiasm over space exploration
