MOSCOW. April 11 (Interfax) - A criminal case has been opened over the illegal seizure of assets worth $1 billion from one of Russia's strategically important banks by Ukrainian authorities, Russian Prosecutor General's Office spokesperson Andrei Ivanov said on Tuesday.
Previously, the prosecutor's office conducted a corresponding inspection.
"The Russian Prosecutor General's Office submitted the materials of the inspection to the Russian Investigative Committee, whose investigators have decided to initiate a criminal case on the grounds of crimes stipulated by Part 4 of Article 159 (particularly large-scale theft) and Part 2 of Article 169 (obstruction of lawful business or other activities) of the Russian Criminal Code," Ivanov said.
The Russian bank and its clients suffered losses of over $1 billion due to the illegitimate actions of the Ukrainian authorities, Ivanov said.
According to an informed source, this concerns the Russian Sberbank.
Meanwhile, the Prosecutor General's Office spokesperson noted that, as it was found during the inspection, high-ranking Ukrainian officials "have been restricting the activities of the Russian bank and its subsidiary in the country for a long time, using their managerial resources and lawmaking capabilities."
"The Russian lending institution has repeatedly tried to sell relevant assets in order to provide Ukrainian clients with the opportunity to receive financial services," but the Ukrainian authorities "blocked all such attempts," the Prosecutor General's Office spokesperson said.
He noted that this resulted in the "expropriation of assets of the credit institution, which actually ensured the transfer of the entire property of a subsidiary of a Russian bank into the hands of the Ukrainian oligarchy."
The investigation of the criminal case is under the control of the Russian Prosecutor General's Office, the supervisory agency's representative added.