Russian cultural property law

After the Second World War in 1945, issues surrounding wartime loss and compensation started to arise. Cultural valuables were taken from Germany and placed in the Soviet Union. Years later, at the break up of the USSR, the said cultural valuables came to attention as the issue of ownership arose. Following, the debates between the Russian Duma and the Yeltsin government began, with the Duma focusing on compensation to Russia for wartime loss, and Yeltsin focusing on maintaining international relationships and agreements. Arising from the debate, were many struggles, but ultimately the enactment of the Federal Law on Cultural Valuables Displaced to the USSR as a Result of the Second World War and Located on the Territory of the Russian Federation.

At the end of the Second World War in 1945, in what some would argue as retaliation, and others as compensation for the massive loss of cultural property the Soviet Union suffered, cultural valuables (such as books, art, artifacts, etc.) were taken (stolen, or relocated) from Germany. Since the end of the War the existence of such valuables were kept secret, and their existence was denied. In total during World War II, nearly thirty million Soviet people died as a result of prison camps, torture, starvation and cold blood murder. The USSR suffered a huge wartime loss, not only through cultural property but also by the deaths of millions of people. In 1991 when the collapse of the Soviet Union occurred, and the rise of the Russian Federation began, mention of vast amounts of hidden cultural valuables came to light because the issue of ownership arose.

In June 1992, a Decree of the Russian Government created what was called the State Commission for Restitution of Cultural Valuables, which was to decide issues related to restitution. However, the Commission did very little and was at a halt by June 1993, and then was later abolished by March 2001. Also, in 1992, there were many bilateral cultural agreements with a number of countries such as, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Luxembourg, Poland, and the United Kingdom for mutual restitution of displaced cultural valuables; none of which were talked about in the Constitutional Court ruling in 1999 about the constitutionality of the Russian 1998 law, where international agreements were to be put above domestic laws. However, in June 1992 there was the only restitution of books to the west by Russia; there was 600 Dutch books that were returned to the Netherlands. But, this is only a small portion of the estimated 30,000 Dutch books that had arrived in the USSR. The idea of restitution did not last long, and soon turned into demands for compensation.

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