Representatives of more than 50 states plus the European Union have taken part in the first meeting of the preparatory committee for the International Claims Commission for Ukraine.
A convention establishing the International Claims Commission was adopted and opened for signature at a diplomatic conference in The Hague in December 2025.
The claims commission will be set up within the framework of the Council of Europe. It will review, assess and decide upon claims for compensation for wrongful acts committed by the Russian Federation in or against Ukraine. It will also determine the amount of compensation due – if any – in each case.
The Council of Europe: ensuring justice for Ukraine
More than 165,000 claims have already been submitted to the Register of Damage for Ukraine, which was established in 2023 – also within the Council of Europe – as the first step of a comprehensive compensation mechanism for victims of the war.
The preparatory committee for the International Claims Commission was set up by the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers in February 2026.
It consists of representatives of the 39 states, plus the European Union, that have so far signed the convention establishing the International Claims Commission. Twelve other states asked to attend the meeting as observers, in line with the statute of the preparatory committee.
The International Claims Commission will come into being when 25 signatories have ratified the convention, as long as sufficient funding has been guaranteed to support its initial work.
The preparatory committee will prepare rules and procedures for different parts of the International Claims Commission. It will also prepare a provisional budget for the claims commission’s first financial year and a scale for members’ annual contributions.
At this week’s meeting in The Hague, the preparatory committee elected its chair and vice-chair, adopted its own rules of procedure, decided upon its programme of work and started discussing draft rules and procedures for the claims commission’s administrative bodies. Further meetings are due to take place in the coming months.
Learn more about the International Claims Commission for Ukraine
