KYIV. Jan 25 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The National Agency of Ukraine for finding, tracing and management of assets derived from corruption and other crimes (the Asset Recovery and Management Agency or ARMA) has decided to extend the term for submitting documents to participate in a tender to select a manager of seized assets of the Mezhyhirya Residence until February 28, 2019 inclusive.

"With the hope of attracting business to participate in the tender, it was decided to extend the selection of the manager of Mezhyhirya until the end of February this year, inclusive," ARMA Head Anton Yanchuk said at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine on Friday.

According to him, the tender lasted 51 days and, until today, only two entities showed a desire to participate in the tender: National Park of Ukraine Mezhyhirya LLC and Atlant Develop LLC.

The head of ARMA said that the agency, taking into account the criticism from journalists, would take measures to make the tender public.

"Announcements and other documents [outlined by the provisions of the tender], they reasonably foresee that the tender committee will process information in the commercial section confidentially... These forms of documents really warn that this information is provided to the tender committee with a specific purpose. If it is about a public discussion, then legally it is absolutely possible. The only thing is that we will make a warning to these statements so that all participants in the tender are aware that all commercial information submitted by them will become available to the public," Yanchuk said.

As reported, the property of the Mezhyhirya Residence was seized by the Pechersky District court on July 13, 2015 (the decision was upheld by the Kyiv court of appeals on August 10 of the same year). On August 1, 2017, the Kyiv business court of appeals decided to invalidate the contracts under which the Mezhyhirya Residence was removed from ownership of the state in 2007.

On May 29, 2018, Kyiv's Pechersky District Court transferred the Mezhyhirya Residence in the Vyshgorod District of Kyiv region, where the former president Viktor Yanukovych (2010-2014) lived, to the management of the ARMA.