MOSCOW (Sputnik) – On March 5, 2014, Brussels imposed sanctions against a number of Ukrainian citizens who are considered responsible for the theft of state funds, including Yanukovych and his sons, freezing assets and issuing visa bans. A number of the defendants challenged the legality of the EU sanctions in the EU Court of Justice.
"On December 24, 2014 Ukraine informed the EU court of the withdrawal of its applications to join the process in handling complaints of Ukrainian officials in the EU court. This recall was the reason for the EU court excluding Ukraine from three registers in three cases under March 11, 2015 orders. The EU court decided that it was necessary to compensate the losses of a number of plaintiffs," Lukash wrote on Facebook.
According to Ukraine’s former justice minister, Yanukovych and his two sons – Oleksandr and Viktor, who died last year – are to be paid 57, 317 British pounds (about $81,000) each.
"And for many, these sanctions have been lifted," Lukash wrote on Facebook.
In February 2014, violent clashes with law enforcement officials broke out in central Kiev's Independence Square, or Maidan Nezalezhnosti, claiming the lives of 100 civilians. The protests spread across the country and led to a government coup, forcing then-President Viktor Yanukovych to flee the country. Since then, Ukraine has been plagued by economic and political turmoil.
