The Swiss Federal Council's decision of December 20, 2017 to extend for one year its "freeze on the assets" of President Yanukovych and his "entourage," and the media release published on this occasion referring to the “freezes on … Ukrainian assets (CHF 70 million)," does not assert that President Yanukovych had or has any assets in Switzerland, Joseph Hage Aaronson LLP (JHA LLP) has reported.

"On the contrary, the Swiss Federal Council’s similar decision and announcement made last year, on December 9, 2016, was later clarified by a letter dated March 1, 2017 from the Swiss authorities confirming that: there are no bank accounts or other assets in Switzerland held in the name of President Yanukovych that they have frozen (as President Yanukovych himself has always contended); and the asset freezes imposed by Switzerland concern other persons (i.e. not President Yanukovych) listed in the Appendix to the Ordinance on the Freezing of Assets in Connection with Ukraine," JHA LLP said in a press release published on Friday.

The lawyers draw attention again to their earlier press release dated March 3, 2017 dealing with the 2016 Decision and announcement.

"Nothing has changed. The Swiss federal Council still do not clearly state who the "CHF 70 million" referred to in their announcements belongs to, but, that said, the Swiss Federal Council have officially acknowledged that it does not belong to President Yanukovych," the company said.

Indeed, the Swiss Federal Council, in its 20 December 2017 announcement, observes that is has not yet even been determined "whether or not the origins of the frozen assets are illicit."

The Swiss Federal Council on December 20, 2017 resolved to extend by a year a freeze on the assets of former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych and several individuals closely associated with them.

One year earlier, on December 9, 2016, the Federal Council extended the freeze on Ukrainian assets in the amount of CHF 70 million for a year and the decision would have expired in February 2018.

Joseph Hage Aaronson LLP is a law firm based in London representing Viktor Yanukovych and his son Oleksandr Yanukovych.