For the first time, Ukraine has been entrusted with the responsibility to ensure the financial activities of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), the world's oldest judicial institution, located in The Hague (the Netherlands).

Ukrainian Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands Vsevolod Chentsov, elected on December 8 as Chair of PCA Budget Committee, said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine that his duties will include coordinating all issues related to the financial and budgetary aspects of PAS activities. "This implies consultations with other member states, preparation of relevant documents, chairmanship at the meetings of the committee. Most of the work falls on the second half of the calendar year, when work is underway on the budget for next year," the Ukrainian diplomat said. Chentsov said the PAS does not directly exercise judicial functions.

"The Permanent Court of Arbitration is the oldest judicial institution in the world, which was founded in 1899. And paradoxically, the PAS does not perform its own judicial function, although it may seem so based on the name. This institution acts rather as a platform, within and which can help resolve international disputes," the ambassador said.

According to him, arbitration courts consisting of three to five arbitrators are created to consider specific cases.

"However, PAS acts as a secretariat in the relevant proceedings, and can also provide services for the appointment of arbitrators," Chentsov said. The Ukrainian diplomat said that Ukraine also used the services of the PAS, and today two arbitration tribunals under the auspices of PAS are considering two cases on the claims of Ukraine against the Russian Federation.

"This is a case concerning the rights of the coastal state in the Black and Azov Seas and the Kerch Strait and the case of the seizure of three Ukrainian warships and crew members. Both cases are being considered in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea," the newly elected chair of the PAS Budget Committee said.

In addition, Ukrainian companies actively use PAS services, in particular, in the framework of overcoming the consequences of Russian aggression.

"There are several cases, and they are at different stages of consideration," he said.

Answering a question whether he, as chair of the Budget Committee, has leveraged over the resolution of Ukrainian affairs, Chentsov said: "This is not about influence. Our participation in the work of the PAS authorities, as well as the participation of all 122, is a part of the institution's management process. The PAS is precisely a platform that provides opportunities for resolving disputes, rather than a court in the traditional sense, and the issues of ensuring the functioning of this platform are separated from the proceedings that take place under its auspices. As part of the chairmanship, we see our mission precisely in contributing to the effective functioning of this authoritative institution."

Since the creation of this position, Ukraine is the first among the states of Eastern Europe to chair the Committee.

Photo by Sofiya Shovikova