Azovstal Owner To Sue Russia for Billions; Ukrainian Flag Flies Over Putin Peak

Everything comes with a cost, even in a time of war. The owner of the Azovstal steelworks at the ruined city Mariupol, emblematic of the valiant Ukrainian resistance to weeks of Russian aggression, estimated the cost of its damages in the billions of dollars — and he wants it back. Rinat Akhmetov, said to be the richest man in Ukraine, owns the Azovstal steelworks and the Illich Steel and Iron Works, both of which endured weeks of heavy Russian bombardment and shelling. He seeks restitution for up to $20 billion in losses. In an interview with the Ukrainian news site Mrpl.city, Mr. Akhmetov said the plants’ repair bill “will range from $17 to $20 billion. The final amount will be determined in a statement of claim against Russia.” It was not clear in which court Mr. Akhmetov intends to file his lawsuit. In an indication that despite the staggering material damage all is not lost, he added, “Our steel mills produce anti-tank hedgehogs and steel for body armor. And we don’t plan to stop. We will help Ukraine and Ukrainians as much as necessary.”Mr. Akhmetov had already seen his business empire shaken by eight years of fighting in Ukraine’s east after pro-Russian separatists took over swaths of territory there in 2015, Reuters reported. In response to a question from Mrpl.city about the relocation of some of his financial and industrial business to western Ukraine, Mr. Akmetov replied that this was “a temporary necessary measure to ensure the country’s energy security and save people’s lives.” He added, “And what I believe in is our victory, with Crimea and Donbas as part of a united Ukraine.”Even far to the east of embattled Ukraine, there are some who believe in that victory as well. In landlocked Kyrgyzstan, a former Soviet Socialist Republic that is a staunch ally of the Russian strongman, one of many mountains is called Putin Peak — it took the leader’s name in 2011 as Kyrgyzstan’s ties with Moscow strengthened following a revolution that occurred the year before, the Agence France-Presse reported. Now, the French agency reports that an anonymous mountaineer has planted a Ukrainian flag at the summit some 14,587 feet above sea level. A photograph posted to Twitter showed the blue-and-yellow standard of Ukraine fluttering in the icy breeze over a plaque marking Putin Peak. A Kyrgyz police spokesman said that a pair of climbers of unspecified nationality could face a fine for the seemingly spontaneous show of bravado, or as they call it in Putin-proud Bishkek, “hooliganism.”

Azovstal Owner To Sue Russia for Billions; Ukrainian Flag Flies Over Putin Peak

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